Xylem-feeder
Guides
Prosapia bicincta
Two-lined Spittlebug, Twolined Spittlebug
Prosapia bicincta, commonly known as the two-lined spittlebug, is a froghopper in the family Ischnorhinidae (formerly Cercopidae). Native to the eastern United States, it was first detected in Hawaiʻi in 2016 and has since become a destructive invasive pest of pasture grasses, infesting over 70,000 hectares on Hawaiʻi Island. The species is named for the two prominent red or orange stripes crossing the black wings of adults and for the foamy spittle masses produced by nymphs. It causes significant economic damage to forage grasses, turfgrasses, and sugarcane through feeding that induces water stress, reduces photosynthesis, and causes plant tissue death.
Prosapia isobar
Prosapia isobar is a spittlebug species in the family Ischnorhinidae, described by Hamilton in 1977. It belongs to a genus containing several economically significant pasture pests, though specific information about this species is limited compared to its congener P. bicincta. The genus Prosapia is native to the Americas and includes species that feed on xylem sap of grasses and other plants.
Prosapia simulans
Prosapia simulans is a spittlebug species (Hemiptera: Cercopidae) native to Central America that was first detected in Colombia in 1999, where it has since become an economic pest of cultivated graminoids. The species has a hemimetabolous life cycle with five nymphal instars and exhibits a notably long life cycle of approximately 72 days compared to other spittlebug species in the region. Females preferentially oviposit on plant stems rather than soil, distinguishing it ecologically from congeners. Eggs can enter diapause, with field-collected eggs showing nearly 70% diapause incidence during dry season months. The species currently has a restricted distribution within Colombia's Cauca Valley but poses ongoing agricultural concern.
Ptyelini
Ptyelini is a tribe of spittlebugs (family Aphrophoridae, order Hemiptera) characterized by large-bodied nymphs that produce copious amounts of frothy spittle. The tribe contains multiple genera distributed across the Old World tropics, with Cephisus being the sole representative genus in the New World. Members are xylem-feeding insects whose nymphal stage is concealed within protective spittle masses.
Sibovia
Sibovia is a genus of sharpshooter leafhoppers in the family Cicadellidae, established by China in 1927. The genus contains at least 30 described species. Sharpshooters are known for their ability to shoot droplets of liquid waste from their anal opening, a behavior that gives the group its common name. As members of the tribe Cicadellini, species in this genus are part of a diverse lineage of xylem-feeding insects.
Tylozygus
Tylozygus is a genus of sharpshooters in the family Cicadellidae, established by Fieber in 1866. The genus comprises approximately six described species distributed primarily in the Americas. Members of this genus are leafhoppers that feed on plant vascular fluids. The genus is placed in the tribe Cicadellini within the subfamily Cicadellinae.