Hoppers of North Carolina

Hoppers of North Carolina:
Spittlebugs, Leafhoppers, Treehoppers, and Planthoppers

Family (Alpha):

CICADELLIDAE Members:	NC Records
Agalliopsis novella - No Common Name

Taxonomy

Family: CICADELLIDAE

Subfamily: Megophthalminae

Identification

Online Photographs: BugGuide
Description: Generally light brown or green to nearly black in color, but can be extremely variable; males are usually darker than females. In NC, individuals have tended to have a mostly blackish body, with dark wings and a dark pronotum. Some individuals have a mostly black scutellum while others show more yellow. The legs and head/face are a bold yellow, contrasting with the black body. There are six black dots on the yellow face: two above each eye and one below the upper two dots, near the center of the face. Some of the wing venation is also yellow, and the underside of the abdomen is a blackish yellow. Females have a pregenital sternite that is deeply concave, with a deep U-shaped emargination from the base. Male genitalia description is as follows: "valve short, emarginate posteriorly; plates semi-tubular, bluntly rounded at apexes, and scarcely covering the opening of the large genital chamber" (DeLong 1948); essentially, the male visual genitalia is short and squat without any notable emarginations. Adult males are 3.3- 3.5 mm long while females are 3.75- 4.0 mm. (Oman 1970)

Distribution in North Carolina

County Map: Clicking on a county returns the records for the species in that county.

Distribution: Found throughout much of eastern North America, west to the Great Plains at least (Oman 1970)

Abundance: Recorded from the mountains and Piedmont where it seems to be uncommon but can be locally common; probably more abundant in the right habitat.

Seasonal Occurrence

Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec

Habitats and Life History

Habitats: This species has been found in open mixed hardwood forest as well as grassy, montane meadows

Plant Associates: Potato, Clover; common on herbaceous vegetation. A. novella has been known to transmit the Potato yellow dwarf virus (Nucleorhabdovirus) and therefore can affect potato crops. In addition, it is considered to be the most important vectors of clover club leaf virus and one of the most important vectors of wound tumor virus in the country. It is the only species of Agalliopsis that is a vector (A. novella).

Behavior: Can be attracted at night with a light.

Comment: Agalliopsis species (ancistra, novella, and peneoculata) can be challenging to differentiate from one another; therefore, it is helpful to have a picture of the underside with a view of the genitalia. Ancistra is quite similar in particular to novella but is slightly larger and paler (novella specimens can be quite dark). The pregenital sternite (sternum VII) in both ancistra and novella is also quite similar, being deeply concave; this contrasts with the truncate, not concave sternites of peneoculata. Female coloration of novella and ancistra can be similar, though ancistra females are typically marked less with fuscous and tend to be more tawny than cinereous; male ancistra usually do not show the extreme fuscous coloration found in some males of novella. (Oman 1970)

Status: Native

Global and State Rank:

Species Photo Gallery for Agalliopsis novella No Common Name
	Photo by: Paul Scharf Warren Co. Comment: Attracted to Black Light; TENTATIVE ID	Photo by: PaulScharf Warren Co. Comment: Attracted to Black Light. TENTATIVE ID
	Photo by: Kyle Kittelberger, Brian Bockhahn, Paul Scharf Avery Co. Comment: grassy, field type habitat near forest edge; some females	Photo by: Kyle Kittelberger, Brian Bockhahn, Paul Scharf Avery Co. Comment: grassy, field type habitat near forest edge; some females
	Photo by: Kyle Kittelberger, Brian Bockhahn, Paul Scharf Avery Co. Comment: grassy, field type habitat near forest edge; some females	Photo by: Kyle Kittelberger, Brian Bockhahn, Paul Scharf Avery Co. Comment: grassy, open area surrounded by forest
	Photo by: Kyle Kittelberger, Brian Bockhahn, Paul Scharf Avery Co. Comment: grassy, open area surrounded by forest	Photo by: Kyle Kittelberger, Brian Bockhahn, Paul Scharf Avery Co. Comment: grassy, open area surrounded by forest
	Photo by: Kyle Kittelberger, Brian Bockhahn, Paul Scharf Avery Co. Comment: grassy, open area surrounded by forest	Photo by: Kyle Kittelberger, Brian Bockhahn, Paul Scharf Avery Co. Comment: grassy, open area surrounded by forest
	Photo by: Kyle Kittelberger, Brian Bockhahn, Paul Scharf Avery Co. Comment: grassy, open area surrounded by forest	Photo by: Kyle Kittelberger Wake Co. Comment: near mixed hardwood forest habitat
	Photo by: Kyle Kittelberger Wake Co. Comment: near mixed hardwood forest habitat	Photo by: Kyle Kittelberger Wake Co. Comment: near mixed hardwood forest habitat
	Photo by: Kyle Kittelberger, Brian Bockhahn, Paul Scharf Avery Co. Comment: grassy, brushy field-type habitat in old christmas tree farm; photo of a dark individual, tentative ID	Photo by: Kyle Kittelberger, Brian Bockhahn, Paul Scharf Avery Co. Comment: grassy, brushy field-type habitat in old christmas tree farm; photo of a dark individual, tentative ID
	Photo by: Kyle Kittelberger, Brian Bockhahn, Paul Scharf Avery Co. Comment: grassy, brushy field-type habitat in old christmas tree farm; photo of a dark individual, tentative ID	Photo by: Randy L Emmitt Orange Co. Comment: uv light
	Photo by: Ken Kneidel Yancey Co. Comment: forest edge with small lawn and meadow nearby	Photo by: Ken Kneidel Yancey Co. Comment: forest edge with small lawn and meadow nearby
	Photo by: Ken Kneidel Yancey Co. Comment: forest edge with small lawn and meadow nearby	Photo by: Rob Van Epps Mecklenburg Co. Comment: Caught sweeping in weedy woodland edge.

Agalliopsis novella - No Common Name

Species Photo Gallery for Agalliopsis novella No Common Name