Family Dictyopharidae

Subfamily Dictyopharinae Onuki, 1901

Tribe Phylloscelini Emeljanov, 1983 (sensu Emeljanov 2011)

Genus Phylloscelis Germar, 1839.

Type species (in original combination): Phylloscelis pallescens Germar, 1839.

Synonyms: None.

Distribution: Widespread but local over much of the US (esp. east), with a few records in Mexico.

Recognized species

There are 4 recognized species. 

Phylloscelis atra Germar, 1839 - USA: AL, AR, CT, DC, FL, GA, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, MA, MD, MI, MO, MS, NC, NE, NJ, NY, OH, OK, PA, SC, TN, TX, VA, WV; CAN: ON; Mexico
     = Phylloscelis atra var. albovenosa Melichar 1906: 179; syn. by McPherson & Wilson 1995: 181.
     = Phylloscelis atra var. ocala Ball 1930: 193; syn. by McPherson & Wilson 1995: 181.
Phylloscelis pallescens Germar, 1839 - USA: AR, FL, IA, IL, KS, KY, LA, MA, MD, MI, MO, MS, NC, NJ, NY, OH, PA, TX, VA; CAN: ON; Mexico

Phylloscelis pennata Ball, 1937 - USA: TX; Mexico (Nuevo León)
Phylloscelis rubra Ball, 1930 - USA: FL, MS, NC, NJ, NY
     = Phylloscelis rubra var. nigra Ball 1930:194; syn. by McPherson & Wilson 1995: 182.

Economic Importance:

Limited, although Phylloscelis rubra, the 'cranberry toad bug' is of some importance on cranberries.

Known host plants: 

Phylloscelis atra - Rhus copallina L. (winged sumac, Anacardiaceae)

Phylloscelis pallescens - Pycnanthemum tenuifolium Schrad. (narrowleaf mountainmint; Lamiaceae)

Phylloscelis pennata - Solanum sp. (nightshade, Solanaceae)

Phylloscelis rubra - Vaccinium macrocarpon Aiton  (cranberry. Ericaceae)

Hosts from Donovall (2008) and Wilson et al. (1993, 1994); plant names from USDA PLANTS or Tropicos.

Recognition:

Distinctive - dark, stout, usually brachypterous with enlarged legs and head not projected.

Phylloscelis atra (All photos by Rick Donovall or Kimberley Shropshire, Department of Entomology, University of Delaware) (For P. atra, note that there are fewer veins in the forewing than in P. rubra.)

Phylloscelis pallescens

Phylloscelis rubra

Phylloscelis on Bugguide is here.

Collecting

Collected infrequently, but sometimes in numbers, by sweeping or inspecting hosts.

Molecular resources: As of this writing, data for this genus is not available on Genbank.  Three species of Phylloscelis (P. atra, pallescens, and rubra) are available on Barcode of life.

Selected references:

Ball, E. D. 1930. The toadhoppers of the genus Phylloscelis Germ. (Rhynchota Fulgoridae). Canadian Entomologist 62: 192-195.

Ball, E. D. 1937. Some New Fulgoridae from the Western United States. Bulletin of the Brooklyn Entomological Society 32(5): 171-183.

Donovall, L. R., III. 2008. A generic revision of the new world Dictyopharinae (Hemiptera: Dictyopharidae). Masters Thesis. University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware.

Emeljanov, A. F. 1983. Dictyopharidae from the Cretaceous deposits on the Taymyr Peninsula (Insecta, Homoptera). Paleontologicheskii Zhurnal 3: 79-85 [In Russian; translated in: Paleontological Journal 17(3): 77-82].

Emeljanov, A. F. 2011. Improved tribal delimitation of the subfamily Dictyopharinae and description of new genera and new species (Homoptera, Fulgoroidea, Dictyopharidae). Ėntomologicheskoe Obozrenie 90(2): 299-328 [In Russian, English Translation, Entomological Review 91(9): 1122-1145].

Fennah, R. G. 1944. New Dictyopharidae from the New World (Homoptera : Fulgoroidea). Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington 57: 77-94.

McPherson, K. R. 1994. The dictyopharid planthopper genus Phylloscelis in the United States with notes on the biology and immatures of P. pallescens (Homoptera: Fulgoroidea). Thesis, Central Missouri State University. Master's Thesis. 84 pp.

McPherson, K. R. and S. W. Wilson. 1995. The planthopper genus Phylloscelis in the United States (Homoptera: Dictyopharidae). Insecta Mundi 9: 177-188.

McPherson, K. R. and S. W. Wilson. 1996. Life history and descriptions of immatures of the dictyopharid planthopper Phylloscelis pallescens (Homoptera: Fulgoroidea). Journal of the New York Entomological Society 103: 170-179.

Metcalf, Z. P. 1923. A key to the Fulgoridae of eastern North America with descriptions of new species. Journal of the Elisha Mitchell Scientific Society 38(3): 139-230, plus 32 plates. [available from http://www.lib.unc.edu/dc/jncas/].

Metcalf, Z. P. 1946. General Catalogue of the Homoptera. Fascicle IV Fulgoroidea. Part 8 Dictyopharidae. Smith College, Northhampton, Massachusetts.

Sirrine, F. A. and B. B. Fulton. 1914. The cranberry toad bug. New York Agricultural Experiment Station Bulletin 377: 91-112.

Wilson, S. W., J. L. Smith, and P. D. Calvert. 1993. Planthoppers of a Missouri tallgrass prairie (Homoptera: Fulgoroidea Journal of the Kansas Entomological Society 66: 75-80.

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.