Family Delphacidae Leach, 1815
Subfamily Delphacinae Leach, 1815
Tribe Delphacini Leach, 1815
Genus Leptodelphax Haupt, 1927
Synonyms: none
Type species: Leptodelphax cyclops Haupt, 1927
Distribution
Native to Africa and the Mediterranean region. Invasive in southern South America.
Recognized species
Leptodelphax cyclops Haupt, 1927 – Cyprus, Egypt, Greece, Israel, Italy, Turkey
Leptodelphax dymas Fennah, 1961 – Senegal
Leptodelphax maculigera (Stål, 1859) – Reunion, Mauritius, Mascarene Islands, Ivory Coast, Madagascar, Kenya, and Cameroon ; invasive in Brazil (Goiás, Paraná, Santa Catarina, Rio Grande do Sul, Minas Gerais), Paraguay, Argentina
Plant associations
Leptodelphax cyclops – Saccharum sp. (Poaceae) (Drosopoulos et al. 1983: 58)
Leptodelphax maculigera – Pennisetum clandestinum Hochst. ex Chiov., Saccharum officinarum L., Setaria sphacelata (Schumach.) Stapf & C.E. Hubb. ex M.B. Moss. Zea mays L. (All Poaceae) (Bonfils et al. 1994)
Economic Importance
Invasive in the Neotropics. Associated with maize and sugarcane. Leptodelphax maculigera in Brazil carried the pathogens for maize bushy stunt phytoplasma, maize rayado fino virus, and maize striate mosaic virus, but transmission has not been confirmed.
Recognition
Medium-sized delphacid (~3-4 mm). Of delicate appearance, with very long and narrow wings, far exceeding the length of the body. The only taxon of uniformly yellowish color and a dark spot between the frons and clypeus.
Online resources
TaxonPages (World Auchenorrhyncha Database)
iNaturalist.
FLOW.
Molecular resources
Genbank has a little data on L. dymas. BOLD has three specimen records of L. cyclops, none with data.
Selected references
Ammar, E.D. & L.R. Nault. 2002. Virus transmission by leafhopper, planthoppers, and treehoppers (Auchenorrhyncha, Homoptera). Advances in Botanical Research 36: 141–167.
Arocha, Y., M. Lopez, M. Fernandez, B. Pinol, D. Horta, E. L. Peralta, R. Almeida, O. Carvajal, Picornell, S., M.R. Wilson & P. Jones. 2005. Transmission of a sugarcane yellow leaf phytoplasma by the delphacid planthopper Saccharosydne saccharivora, a new vector of sugarcane yellow leaf syndrome. Plant Pathology 54: 634–642.
Asche, M. 1988. Delphacidae from Côte d’Ivoire (Homoptera, Fulgoroidea). Revue Française d’entomologie 10: 151–231.
Attié, M., T. Bourgoin, J. Veslot & A. Soulier-Perkins. 2008. Patterns of trophic relationships between planthoppers (Hemiptera: Fulgoromorpha) and their host plants on the Mascarene Islands. Journal of Natural History 42: 1591–1638. https://doi.org/10.1080/00222930802106963
Bonfils, J., S. Quilici & B. Reynaud. 1994. Les Hémiptères Auchénorrhynques de l’Ile de la Réunion. Bulletin de La Société Entomologique de France 99: 227–240. https://doi.org/10.3406/bsef.1994.17061
Bortolotto, O.C., R.O. Molina, M.H. Garcia, J. B. Pazini, C.C.L. Andrade & T. Mituti. 2023. Leptodelphax maculigera (Hemiptera: Delphacidae): first occurrence in southern Brazil and potential rayado fino vector. Brazilian Journal of Biology 83(e277457): 1–2.
Canale, M.C., M. A. P. Manica, M.V.S. Andrade & R.V. Castilhos. 2024. Leptodelphax maculigera (Hemiptera: Delphacidae) harbors the corn stunt complex pathogens. Plant Disease 108(9): 2653–2657.
Deguine, J.-P. & G. Ekukole. 1997. Protection phytosanitaire du cotonnier, pp. 389–408. In: Seiny Boukar, L., J.-F. Poulain, and G. Faure, eds. Agricultures des savanes du Nord-Cameroun: vers un développement solidaire des savanes d’Afrique centrale. CIRAD-CA, Montpellier, France. 527 pp. https://agritrop.cirad.fr/314409/1/ID314409.pdf. Accessed March 2025
Drosopoulos S., M. Asche & H. Hoch. 1983. Contribution to the planthopper fauna of Greece (Homoptera, Auchenorrhyncha, Fulgoromorpha, Delphacidae). Annales de l’Institut Phytopathologique Benaki 14: 19–68.
Ferreira, K.R., C.R. Bartlett, M. Asche, L R.S. Silva, V. S. Magalhães & K.C. Albernaz-Godinho. 2023. First record of the African species Leptodelphax maculigera (Stål, 1859) (Hemiptera: Delphacidae) in Brazil. Neotropical Entomology 53: 171–174.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s13744-023-01099-1
Koji, S., S. Fujinuma, C.A.O. Midega, H.M. Mohamed, T. Ishikawa, M.R. Wilson, M. Asche, S. Degelo, T. Adati, J.A. Pickett & Z.R. Khan. 2012. Seasonal abundance of Maiestas banda (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae), a vector of phytoplasma, and other leafhoppers and planthoppers (Hemiptera: Delphacidae) associated with Napier grass (Pennisetum purpureum) in Kenya. Journal of Pest Science 85: 37–46. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10340-011-0376-z
Leavengood, J.M. Jr., C.R. Bartlett & K. Ivanov. 2025. First record of the African species Leptodelphax maculigera (Stål, 1859) (Hemiptera: Delphacidae) in Paraguay. Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington 127(1): 121–127. https://doi.org/10.4289/0013-8797.127.1.121
de Remes Lenicov, A.M.M., R. Mariani, M. Almada, A. Saluso & D.E. Szwarc. 2025. The exotic delphacid Leptodelphax maculigera (Hemiptera: Fulgoroidea) in Argentina: Taxonomy and biological aspects. Revista de La Sociedad Entomológica Argentina, 84, e0211. https://doi.org/10.25085/rsea.840211
Nault, L.R. 1994. Transmission biology, vector specificity and evolution of planthopper-transmitted plant viruses, pp. 429-448. In: Denno, R. F. and T. J. Perfect, eds. Planthoppers: Their Ecology and Management. Chapman and Hall, New York. X + 799 pp.
da Silva, P., I.R.P. de Souza, S.M. Mendes, A.F. da Silva, E.C. Landau, N.M. dos Santos, A.C.M. Redoan & D.D. Lima. 2025. Co-occurrence and frequency of Leptodelphax maculigera and Dalbulus maidis in maize and weeds in the Minas Gerais state, Brazil. Pesquisa Agropecuária Tropical 55(e80820): 1–8.
Stål, C. 1859. Hemiptera. Species novas descripsit. Fregatten Eugenies Resa. Arkiv for Zoologi. Utgifvet af K. Svenska Vetenskaps-akademien 4: 219–298.
Stürmer, G.R., C.W. Guterres, H. Pozebon, C.C.L. de Andrade, T. Mituti, Y. Cardoza & I. Ferri. 2024. Simultaneous infection of Leptodelphax maculigera (Hemiptera: Delphacidae) by maize rayado fino virus (MRFV) and maize bushy stunt phytoplasma (MBSP) detected in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. Journal of Plant Diseases and Protection 131(1): 2247–2253.
Vilanova, E.S., A.J. Zuin, L.C. Spada, J.A. Froza, G.L.F. Mejdalani & J.R.S. Lopes. 2025. Identification of pearl millet as a major host of Leptodelphax maculigera (Hemiptera: Delphacidae), a potential vector of plant viruses. Journal of Plant Diseases and Protection 132(76). https://doi.org/10.1007/s41348-025-01074-5
Wilson, S.W., C. Mitter, R.F. Denno & M.R. Wilson. 1994. Evolutionary patterns of host plant use in delphacid planthoppers and their relatives, pp. 7–45. In: Denno, R.F. & T.J. Perfect, eds. Planthoppers: Their Ecology and Management. Chapman and Hall, New York, New York. X + 799 pp.
