Genus Phyllodinus Van Duzee, 1897

[Back to Higher classification of Delphacidae]

Family Delphacidae Leach, 1815

Subfamily Delphacinae Leach, 1815

Tribe Delphacini Leach, 1815

Genus Phyllodinus Van Duzee, 1897

Synonyms:

Jamiphax Matsumura, 1940 synonym of Phyllodinus Van Duzee, 1897 according to Ishihara (1949: 73).

Type species: Phyllodinus nervatus Van Duzee, 1897.

Distribution

North temperate North America, especially east; but three species currently in this genus from Taiwan and one from the Philippines.

Recognized species

Five currently recognized species as follows: [See Metcalf 1943: 146]

New World

Phyllodinus nervatus Van Duzee, 1897: 240 – USA: Colorado, Iowa, Michigan, New Hampshire, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Utah, Wisconsin, Wyoming; Canada: Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, Saskatchewan

Old World

Phyllodinus affinis (Schumacher, 1915) – Taiwan
= Pundaluoya affinis Schumacher, 1915: 132.
= Phyllodinus affinis (Schumacher, 1915); comb. by Ishihara 1949: 77; see also Yang 1989: 320. (Looks like a Perkinsiella)

Phyllodinus aritainoides (Schumacher, 1915) – Taiwan
= Pundaluoya aritainoides Schumacher, 1915: 141.
= Phyllodinus aritainoides (Schumacher, 1915); comb. by Ishihara 1949: 76; see also Yang 1989: 320. (maybe a Cemus)

Phyllodinus kotoshonis (Matsumura, 1940) – Taiwan
= Jamiphax kotoshonis Matsumura 1940.
= Phyllodinus kotoshonis (Matsumura, 1940); comb. by Ishihara 1949: 77; see also Yang 1989: 319.

Unsure of current nomenclature of the following species (check Ding 2006).

Phyllodinus luzonensis Muir, 1916: 383 (Fennah 1956: 469) – Philippines (Luzon); Vietnam (Tonkin)

Combinations recently in Phyllodinus

Fennah 1964: 147 described Cemus for species formerly placed in Phyllodinus.  He comments on related genera – rather vaguely – as follows [comments in brackets]:

This genus [Cemus] is in the Phyllodinus group. It is separable from Phyllodinus by the many-toothed spur and he normal [i.e., not expanded] forelegs, from Phacalaster by the proportions and cylindrical shape of the first antennal segment [I suppose Phacalastor‘s antenna is flattened]. and by male genitalic structure, from Asiracina by the shape of the head, the normal fore legs, the relatively short first antennal segment, and the pattern of the male genitalia; from the closely allied Pelides it is separated by the relatively long common vein in the clavus, by the normal fore and middle legs [forelegs not or feebly flattened], and by the shape of the seventh and eighth abdominal sterna, and from Platypareia by the proportions of the antennae, shape of the head, and structure of the male genitalia. …
…
Species of this genus [Cemus] are very similar, and their distribution suggested to the writer [Fennah] the possibility that they might represent a single polytypic species.

The following were transferred to Cemus by Fennah 1964: 147, mostly from Phyllodinus:

 Cemus pulchellus (Distant 1912: 190) (Pundaluoya then Phyllodinus by Muir (1921: 485)
 Cemus kirkaldyi Metalf 1943: 148 replacement name for Phacalastor koebelei Kirkaldy 1906 [nec Osborn 1903]),
Cemus sauteri (Muir, 1917: 319) (from Phyllodinus)
Cemus granulinervis (Stal 1854: 246) (from Delphax [Metcalf], and Phyllodinus in Fennah 1956b: 111)
Cemus nigromaculosus (Muir 1917: 319) (from Phyllodinus) (see also Fennah 1956b: 111).

Phyllodinus macaoensis Muir, 1913: 246 (Fennah 1956: 469) – Vietnam (Tonkin); to Cemus macaoensis (Muir, 1913) by Ding (2006): 285.

Other Phyllodinus transferred to other genera:

Phyllodinus punctatus Muir, 1917: 320 to Cemus punctatus (Muir, 1917) by Yang 1989: 131.
Jamiphax nigropunctata Matsumura 1940: 36 (= Phyllodinus nigropunctatus Ishihara, 1949:75; 1952: 42 (misidentification according to Yang 1989: 75), to Cemus nigropunctatus (Matsumura 1940) by Yang 1989: 135.
Phyllodinus albofasciatus Muir, 1929 to Asiracina albofasciata (Muir) by Asche, 1988b: 169.
Phyllodinus badius Muir, 1920: 144 to Asiracina badia (Muir 1920) by Fennah 1969: 12; also Asche 1988: 166.

(Fennah 1956: 469)

Phyllodinus evansi Muir 1929: 194; to Asiracina evensi (Muir) by Asche 1988: 168.

Asche 1988: 169 remarked

The genus Asiracina is externally very similar to the genus Phyllodinus Van Duzee, 1879 [sic. 1897], by means of foliately expanded femora and tibiae of the fore- and middlelegs. The African species which formerly have been placed in Phyllodinus and now are accommodated in Asiracina differ considerably from the nearctic type-species Phyllodinus nervatus Van Duzee, 1897, in characters of the male genitalia: genital segment with paired subcylindrical processes at the ventrocaudal margin (missing in P. nervatus), parameres distally diverging (in P. nervatcus converging), aedeagus with a long recurrent, flag-like distal part (in P. nervatus without recurrent « flag»), suspensorium y-shaped (in P. nervatus rectanaular). These differences do not support the assumption of a closer relationship between these taxa. Therefore the African Asiracina-species which are likely to be monophyletic should kept separate from the North American genus Phyllodinus. Asiracina contains the species Asiracina badia, Asiracina evansi and Asiracina punctovenosa, the latter has not yet been re-examined and could even be identical either with A. evansi, or with A. badia. Also here belongs Phyllodinus albofasciata Muir, 1929
from South Africa, Natal.
… The relationships between Asiracina and oriental taxa with foliate legs which are still placed in Phyllodinus V.D. has to be clarified.

Note: The genus Phyllodinus is probably best restricted to the North American Phyllodinus nervatus.  Both Yang (1989) and Ding (2006) treated Phyllodinus affinis, P. aritainoides, and P. kotoshonis as species of uncertain status.  All four of these species probably belong to Cemus (or Jamiphax); however, this cannot be assumed without review of the type specimens.

The synonymy of Jamiphax with Phyllodinus seems unlikely (termed an error in Bartlett et al. 2014: 135).

Economic Importance

Limited.

Plant associations

Phyllodinus nervatus – common hairgrass (Deschampsia flexuosa (L.) Trin.) (Poaceae) (Wheeler and Hoebeke 2008)

Phyllodinus nervatus – Poa sp. in alluvial floodplain forest.

No plant associations are reported in Wilson et al. 1994.

Recognition

Phyllodinus nervatus can be a locally common species.  In my experience it is found mostly on grasses in mesic forests. It is a large species, usually brachypterous, having a spotted frons, enlarged front femora and tibiae and the teeth of the calcar are reduced and normally not black-tipped.  Among North American taxa it is distinctive, most similar to Pissonotus that share the expanded front legs (e.g., Pissonotus aphidioides , P. tumidus, P. tessellatus , and P. nitens).  Phyllodinus can be separated from all Pissonotus because it lacks the median processes on the ventral margin opening of the male pygofer, which are present in all Pissonotus. Aside from genitalia Phyllodinus is similar to Pissonotus in that the median carinae of the frons is forked on the frons, but in Phyllodinus the branching arms are diverging and distinct, whereas in Pissonotus the arms are closely approximated on the frons.

In the Old World, Phyllodinus is similar to several genera, but especially to Cemus Fennah, 1964.  Fennah (1964) described the differences between Cemus and Phyllodinus as being the former species having a many-toothed calcar and the forelegs not (or not as) expanded.  Other similar genera according to Fennah (1964) include Peliades Jacobi, 1928, Phacalastor Kirkaldy, 1906, Platypareia Muir, 1934, Asiracina Melichar, 1912, and possibly Pundaluoya Kirkaldy, 1902. Phacalastor has the first antennal segments flattened and Peliades does not have expanded forelegs.

 

Phyllodinus nervatus

Phyllodinus nervatus from Wheeler & Hoebeke 2008

Molecular resources

At this time, Genbank and Bold do not have any molecular data for this genus.  Urban et al. (2010) sequenced 4 genetic loci (18S rDNA, 28S rDNA, wingless, and cytochrome oxidase I) for Phyllodinus nervatus in their analyses.

Selected References

[includes distribution records, still incomplete]

Ball, E. D. 1903b. Some new North American Homoptera. Canadian Entomologist 35(6): 227-232.

Ball, E. D. 1926c. The genus Phyllodinus and its allies (Homoptera: Fulgoridae) including the description of the new genus and species. Florida Entomologist 10(2): 17-20.

Bartlett, C. R. and L. L. Deitz. 2000. Revision of the New World delphacid planthopper genus Pissonotus (Hemiptera: Fulgoroidea). Thomas Say Publications in Entomology: Monographs.

Bartlett, C. R., L. B. O’Brien and S. W. Wilson. 2014. A review of the planthoppers (Hemiptera: Fulgoroidea) of the United States. Memoirs of the American Entomological Society 50: 1-287.

Britton, W. E. 1938c. Additions to the check-list of the insects of Connecticut. First supplement to bulletin no. 31. Bulletin of the Connecticut Geological and Natural History Survey 60: 1-169 [Planthoppers – pp. 20-23 only]. (same 1923)

Crawford, D. L. 1914a. A contribution toward a monograph of the homopterous insects of the family Delphacidae of North and South America. Proceedings of the United States National Museum 46: 557-640, plus 6 plates.

Ding, J. H. 2006. Fauna Sinica Insecta Vol. 45 Homoptera Delphacidae. Science Press, Beijing, China.

Easton. E. R. and W. W. Pun. 1999. Observations twelve families of Homoptera in Macau, southeastern China, from 1989 to the present. Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington 101(1): 99-105.

Fennah, R. G. 1956a. Fulgoroidea from southern China. Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences 28(4): 441-527. [see p. 469]

Fennah, R. G. 1956b. Insects of Micronesia, Homoptera: Fulgoroidea. Bernice P. Bishop Museum Insects of Micronesia 6(3): 39-211.

Fennah, R. G. 1964. Delphacidae from Madagascar and the Mascarene Islands (Homoptera: Fulgoroidea). Transactions of the Royal Entomological Society of London 116(7): 131-150.

Hamilton, K.G.A. 2002a. Homoptera (Insecta) in Pacific Northwest grasslands. Part 1 – New and revised taxa of leafhoppers and planthoppers (Cicadellidae and Delphacidae). Journal of the Entomological Society of British Columbia 99: 3-31. [comment, see p. 19]

Hamilton, K.G.A. 2002b. Homoptera (Insecta) in Pacific Northwest grasslands. Part 2 – Pleistocene refugia and postglacial dispersal of Cicadellidae, Delphacidae and Caliscelidae. Journal of the Entomological Society of British Columbia 99: 33-80.

Ishihara, T. 1949.  Revision of the Araeopidae of Japan, Ryukyu Islands, and Formosa. Scientific reports of Matsuyama Agricultural College 2: 1-102.

Ishihara, T. 1952. Some species of Delphacidae new or unrecorded from Shikoku Japan (Hemiptera). Scientific Reports of the Matsuyama Agricultural College 8: 39-47.

Johnson, C. W. 1927a. “Order Homoptera.” In The insect fauna with reference to the flora and other biological features. In Biological survey of the Mount Desert Region conducted by William Proctor. Vol./pp.: 1:1-247. [A list of species; see pp. 33-38.]

Leach, W. E. 1815a. Entomology. The Edinburg encyclopedia; conducted by David Brewster 9: 57-172. (family Delphacidae here).

Leonard, M. D. 1928a. “Families Cercopidae, Membracidae, and Cicadellidae.” In A list of the insects of New York with a list of the spiders and certain other allied groups. Memoir. Cornell University Agricultural Experiment Station 101: 1-1121.(p. 181)

Matsumura, S. 1940. Homopterous insects collected at Kotosho (Botel Tobago) Formosa, by Mr. Tadao Kano. Insecta Matsumurana 15: 34-51 [50]. [Jamiphax kotoshonis Matsumura, 1940]

Maw, H.E.L., R. G. Foottit and K.G.A. Hamilton. 2000. Checklist of the Hemiptera of Canada and Alaska, NRC Research Press, Ottawa, Canada.

Metcalf, Z. P. 1923a. 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. [from http://www.lib.unc.edu/dc/jncas/]

Metcalf, Z. P. 1943. General Catalogue of the Hemiptera. Fascicle IV, Fulgoroidea, Part 3, Araeopidae (Delphacidae). Smith College, Northhampton, Massachusetts. (Phyllodinus begins p. 146)

Moore, G. A. 1950a. Catalogus des hémiptères de la province de Québec. Le Naturaliste Canadien 77: 233-271.

Moore, G. A. 1950b. Check-list of Hemiptera of the province of Quebec. Contributions de l’Institut de Biologie de l’Université de Montréal. 26: 1-49.

Morgan, L. W. and R. H. Beamer. 1949. A revision of three genera of delphacine fulgorids from America north of Mexico. Journal of the Kansas Entomological Society 22(3-4): 97-142.

Muir, F.A.G. 1913b. On some new Fulgoroidea. Proceedings of the Hawaiian Entomological Society 2(5): 237-269. [from http://www.archive.org/]

Muir, F.A.G. 1915b-e. A contribution towards the taxonomy of the Delphacidae. Canadian Entomologist 47: 208-212, 261-270, 296-302, 317-320.

Muir, F. A.G. 1916. Additions to the known Philippine Delphacidae (Hemiptera). Philippine Journal of Science 11: 369-385 [383]. [Phyllodinus luzonensis Muir, 1916]

Muir, F.A.G. 1917d. Homopterous notes. Proceedings of the Hawaiian Entomological Society 3: 311-338.

Muir, F.A.G. 1919a. Notes on the Delphacidae in the British Museum collection. Canadian Entomologist 51: 6-8.

Muir, F.A.G. 1920a. On some African Delphacidae (Homoptera). Bulletin of Entomological Research 10: 139-144. Fig(s).: 1-8.

Muir, F.A.G. 1921b. On some Delphacidae from South India (Homoptera). Proceedings of the Hawaiian Entomological Society 4: 480-486.

Muir, F.A.G. 1921d. On some Samoan fulgorids (Homoptera). Proceedings of the Hawaiian Entomological Society 4(3): 564-584.

Muir, F. A.G. 1927a. Hemiptera, Fulgoroidea. In: Insects of Samoa and other Samoan terrestrial Arthropoda. British Museum . London. Vol./pp.: 1 (2):1-27. Fig(s).: 1-25. [Phyllodinus koebelei]

Muir, F. A. G. 1929. New and little-known African Delphacidae (Homoptera, Fulgoroidea) in the collection of the British Museum. Annals and Magazine of Natural History (Ser. 10) 4: 186-222. [Phyllodinus albofasciatus Muir, 1929]

Muir, F.A.G. and W. M. Giffard. 1924a. Studies in North American Delphacidae. Bulletin of the Experiment Station of the Hawaiian Sugar Planters’ Association, Entomological series no. 15: 1-53.

Oman, P. W. 1947. The types of Auchenorrhynchous Homoptera in the Iowa State College Collection. Iowa State College Journal of Science 21: 161‑228.

Osborn, H. 1903c. New species of Ohio Fulgoridae. Ohio Naturalist 4: 44-46. [2 n. spp. Phyllodinus; 1 n. sp. Myndus.; Delphacidae & Cixiidae]

Osborn, H. 1904a. A further contribution to the hemipterous fauna of Ohio. Ohio Naturalist 4: 99-103.

Osborn, H. 1938b. The Fulgoroidea of Ohio. Bulletin of the Ohio Biological Survey 6: 283-349.

Procter, W. 1946. The insect fauna with reference to methods of capture, foodplants, the flora and other biological features. Biological Survey Mt. Desert region Inc. Part VII. 446 pp. (1927. P. 33) (1937, p. 95)

Schumacher, F. 1915. Homoptera in H. Sauter’s Formosa-Ausbeute. Supplementa Entomologica 4: 108-142 [141]. [Pundaluoya aritainoides Schumacher, 1915]

Strickland, E. H. 1940a. Additional Fulgoridae taken in Alberta. Canadian Entomologist 72:87-88. [Lists species with notes on distribution.]

Strickland, E. H. 1953. An annotated list of the Hemiptera (s.l.) of Alberta. Canadian Entomologist 85: 193-214.

Spooner, C. S. 1912a. Some new species of Delphacidae. Canadian Entomologist 44:233-242.

Spooner, C. S. 1920. Some notes on the occurrence of Delphacinae (Hemp. Homop.). Entomological News 31: 44-46.

Swezey, O. H. 1904b. A preliminary catalogue of the described species of the family Fulgoridae of North America North of Mexico. Bulletin of the Ohio Department of Agriculture. Division of Nursery and Orchard Inspection 3: 1-48.

Van Duzee, E. P. 1897a. A Preliminary Review of the North American Delphacidae. Bulletin of the Buffalo Society of Natural Sciences 5(5): 225-261.

Van Duzee, E. P. 1909a. Observation of some Hemiptera taken in Florida in the spring of 1908. Bulletin of the Buffalo Society of Natural Sciences 9: 149-230.

Van Duzee, E. P. 1916a. Check list of Hemiptera (excepting the Aphididae, Aleurodidae and Coccidae) of America North of Mexico. New York Entomological Society, New York. 111 pp. [see p. 78 onward]

Van Duzee, E. P. 1917b. Catalogue of the Hemiptera of America North of Mexico (excepting the Aphididae, Coccidae and Aleurodidae). University of California Publications, Technical Bulletins, vol. 2. University of California Press, Berkeley, pp. i-xiv, 1-902. [from Google books]

Wheeler, A. G. and E. R. Hoebeke. 2008. Conomelus anceps (Germar) (Hemiptera: Fulgoromorpha: Delphacidae) new to North America, with records of four other delphacid planthoppers new to Newfoundland. Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington 110(2): 265-283.

Wilson, S. W. and J. E. McPherson. 1980a. Keys to the planthoppers, or Fulgoroidea, of Illinois (Homoptera). Transactions of the Illinois Academy of Science 73(2): 1‑61.

Wilson, S. W. and J. E. McPherson. 1980b. The distribution of the Fulgoroidea of the eastern United States (Homoptera). Transactions of the Illinois Academy of Science 73(4): 7‑20.

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.

Wirtner, P. M. 1904a. A preliminary list of the Hemiptera of western Pennsylvania. Annals of the Carnegie Museum. 3:183-232. (p. 215)