Family Tropiduchidae

Subfamily Tambiniinae Kirkaldy, 1907

Gaetuliini Fennah, 1978 (sensu Gnezdilov 2007)

(Note: Historically part of Issidae [e.g., Fennah 1954]; subsequently transferred to Nogodinidae [Fennah 1984], then to Tropiduchidae [Gnezdilov 2007]).

Genus Neaethus Stål, 1861.

Type species (in original combination): Hysteropterum vitripenne Stål, 1854

Synonyms: 

   = Issovarcia Bliven, 1966 (Type species Issovarcia dipteroides Bliven 1966); syn. by O’Brien 1988a: 867.

Distribution: Southwestern USA and extreme northern Mexico

Recognized species

There are 2 species recognized in the genus:

1 Neaethus bicornis Doering, 1941 - USA: CA
    = Issovarcia dipteroides Bliven 1966: 104-105; syn. by O’Brien 1988a: 868.
2 Neaethus consuetus Doering, 1941 - USA: CA
3 Neaethus curvaminis Doering, 1938 - USA: AZ
4 Neaethus diversus Doering, 1938 - USA: AZ
5 Neaethus fenestratus Melichar, 1906 - USA: AZ, CA, NM, UT
6 Neaethus fragosus Van Duzee, 1921 - USA: CA
7 Neaethus grossus Melichar, 1906 - USA: AZ, CA
   Neaethus grossus var. pallidus Melichar, 1906 - USA: AZ?, CA  
8 Neaethus jacintiensus Doering, 1938 - USA: CA; Mexico (Baja California)
9 Neaethus maculatus Melichar, 1906 - USA: CA
   Neaethus maculatus var. fasciatus Van Duzee, 1917a - USA: CA
10 Neaethus nigronervosus Melichar, 1906 - USA: AZ, CA, UT
11 Neaethus perlucidus Doering, 1938 - USA: CA
12 Neaethus semivitreus Fowler, 1896 - USA: CA
13 Neaethus similis Doering, 1938 - USA: CA
14 Neaethus sinehamatus Doering, 1938 - USA: CA
15 Neaethus unicus Doering, 1941 - USA: CA
16 Neaethus uniformis Doering, 1938 - USA: AZ, CA
17 Neaethus vitripennis (Stål, 1854) - USA: AZ, CA

Economic Importance:

Limited.

Known host plants: 

Neaethus bicornis - Arctostaphylos manzanita Parry (whiteleaf manzanita, Ericaceae)

Neaethus consuetus - Arctostaphylos nummularia A. Gray (as Arctostaphylos sensitiva Jeps.; glossyleaf manzanita); Arctostaphylos tomentosa (Pursh) Lindl. (woollyleaf manzanita)

Neaethus unicus - Arctostaphylos pechoensis (Dudley ex Abrams) Dudley ex Munz (Pecho manzanita)

Hosts from Wilson et al. (1994); plant names from USDA PLANTS or Tropicos.

Recognition:

Neaethus can be recognized among the Gaetuliini by the forewings not strap-like, covering the abdomen; forewing transparent (some taxa with sparse markings), elongate, costal margin nearly straight; bulla absent; vertex not obtusely produced (distance from eye to apex of head much less than width of eye, head including eyes wider than pronotum; body pale; hind tibiae with 1-2 lateral spines.

Neaethus is a relatively common genus.  A key to species is found in Doering (1938).

Neaethus sinehamatus (All photos by Kimberley Shropshire, Department of Entomology, University of Delaware)

Key from Doering 1939

Illustrations from Doering 1938 (pages 561, 563)

Neaethus is here on Bugguide, and here on Discover Life.

Collecting

Neaethus is collected by inspecting likely host plants or sweeping.

Molecular resources: As of this writing, (surprisingly) no data for Neaethus is available on Genbank or Barcode of life.

Selected references:

Bliven, B. P. 1966. New genera and species of Issidae. Occidental Entomologist 1: 103-107.

Doering. K. C. 1938. A contribution to the taxonomy of the subfamily Issinae in America north of Mexico (Fulgoroidea: Homoptera. Part II. University of Kansas Science Bulletin 25(20): 447-575.

Doering, K. C. 1941. A contribution to the taxonomy of the subfamily Issinae in America north of Mexico (Fulgoroidea: Homoptera. Part IV. University of Kansas Science Bulletin 27(10): 185-233.

Fennah, R. G. 1954. The Higher classification of the family Issidae (Homoptera: Fulgoroidea) with descriptions of new species. Transactions of the Royal Entomological Society of London 105(19): 455-474.

Fennah, R. G. 1984. Revisionary notes on the classification of the Nogodinidae (Hemiptera: Fulgoroidea), with descriptions of a new genus and a new species. Entomologist's Monthly Magazine 120: 81-86.

Fowler, W. W. 1896. Notes on some Hemiptera-Homoptera, with descriptions of four new species from the Vienna Museum. Entomologist’s Monthly Magazine 32: 104-107.

Gnezdilov, V. M. 2007. On the systematic positions of the Bladinini Kirkaldy, Tonginae Kirkaldy, and Trienopinae Fennah (Homoptera, Fulgoroidea). Zoosystematica Rossica 15: 293-297.

Kirkaldy, G. W. 1907. Leafhoppers supplement (Hemiptera). Bulletin of the Experiment Station of the Hawaiian Sugar Planters’ Association, Entomological Series 3:1-186, plus 20 plates.

Kirkaldy, G. W. 1908. A brief note on three (two new) California Fulgoroid Hemiptera. Proceedings of the Hawaiian Entomological Society 2: 22-23.

Melichar, L. 1906. Monographie der Issiden. (Homoptera). Abhandlungen der K. K. Zoologisch-botanischen Gesellschaft in Wien 3: 1-327.

Metcalf, Z. P. 1958. General catalogue of the Homoptera. Fasc. IV. Fulgoroidea, Part 15. Issidae. North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC. 561 pp.

O'Brien, L. B. 1986. Five new species of Fulgoroidea (Homoptera) from the western United States and Mexico. Southwestern Entomologist 11(2): 67-74. 

O’Brien, L. B. 1988. Taxonomic changes in North American Issidae (Homoptera: Fulgoroidea). Annals of the Entomological Society of America 81: 865-869.

Stål, C. 1854. Nya Hemiptera. Öfversigt af Kongliga Svenska Vetenskaps-Akademiens Förhandlingar 11: 231-255.

Stål, C. 1861. Nova methodus familias quasdam Hemipterorum dispondendi genera Issidarum synoptice disposita. Öfversigt af Kongliga Svenska Vetenskaps-Akademiens Förhandlingar 18: 195-212.

Uhler, P. R. 1889. New genera and species of American Homoptera. Transactions of the Maryland Academy of Sciences 1: 33-44.

Van Duzee, E. P. 1917. Report upon a collection of Hemiptera made by Walter M. Giffard in 1916 and 1917, chiefly in California. Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences (4) 7: 249-318.

Van Duzee, E. P. 1921. Characters of some new species of North American hemipterous insects, with one new genus. Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences (series 4) 11: 111-134.

Wilson, S. W., C. Mitter, R. F. Denno, and M. R. Wilson. 1994. Evolutionary patterns of host plant use by delphacid planthoppers and their relatives. In: R. F. Denno and T. J. Perfect, (eds.). Planthoppers: Their Ecology and Management. Chapman and Hall, New York. Pp. 7-45 & Appendix.