Spittlebug

species: cercopidae
common names: spittlebug
hosts: strawberries, nursery and legume forage crops, many trees
notes:

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada Insect Identification Sheet No. 56     March 1981

Spittlebug

Cercopidae

Spittlebugs, also known as froghoppers, are widely distributed across Canada. They are important pests of strawberries, nursery and legume forage crops, as well as many trees.

Injury:

Both nymphs and adults feed by sucking the sap of host plants. Heavy infestation may result in crop yields being reduced by as much as one third. Wilting, stunting of growth, loss of vigor, and shortening of internodes are other effects. Infested hay is difficult to cure because of dampness from the spittle masses.

Life History:

Spittlebugs overwinter in the egg stage. The white oval eggs hatch late in May. To protect themselves, the newly hatched nymphs excrete a frothy "spittle" that often completely obscures them. At maturity, nymphs range from 3 to 10 mm in length. Orange-yellow when they first emerge, they become tinged with green as they mature, undergoing five molts in the process. Adults are called "froghoppers" because of their habit of hopping about on grass and shrubs, coupled with their slight resemblance to frogs. From July until the first frost, the eggs are laid between the stems and leaf sheaths or under bud scales. For most Canadian species, there is a single generation a year.

Pest Management:

Plowing under stubble that harbor spittlebug eggs is an important way of combating this pest, If chemical controls prove necessary, use them in accordance with the recommendations of your provincial Agriculture Department.

Written under contract to the BC Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks (now Ministry of Water, Land and Air Protection) by: D.E. Henderson, E.S. Cropconsult Ltd., Vancouver, British Columbia in collaboration with D.A. Raworth, Research Station, Vancouver, British Columbia:

Spittlebugs have a wide distribution across Canada and, by feeding on juices of strawberry plants, cause dwarfing and low yield. The insect is covered with spittle, which is a mixture of air and their excretory product. Nymphs must have the spittle to survive. The wedge-shaped species (Philaenus leucophthalmus Linnaeus) that feeds on strawberry is pale white to yellow as a nymph, and grayish brown as an adult. Adults reach a length of 6 mm and move short distances between plants by flight or by jumping. They lay orange eggs on the plant, which overwinter in the field, and from which nymphs hatch in the spring. There are no good natural controls for spittlebugs.