Designed by Paul Smith 2006. This website is copyrighted by law. Material contained herewith may not be used without the prior written permission of FAUNA Paraguay. Photographs on this page were taken by Pier Cacciali and are used with their permission.
APHROPHORIDAE: SPITTLEBUGS
Known as Spittle Bugs on account of the spit-like substance (sometimes colloquialy termed "cuckoo spit") in which the nymphs develop. This "spittle" is actually the excrement produced by the nymph from feeding on watery xylem sap and they actively blow it up into a foamy mass that helps to protect the vulnerable, soft-bodied inhabitant. Though they can often resemble the Cicadellidae they are distinguished by the fact that their tarsi has a rounded, not angular cross-section. They also have 1 or 2 stout spines on the tibia and a ring of spines at the distal end (the Cicadellidae having one or more rows of spines). Like other members of the Suborder they are sap suckers and whilst some species are specific to their host plants, others a more widely polyphagous.
Click on the photos to enlarge them.
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FIGURE 1
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FIGURE 1 - Cephisus siccofolius, PROCOSARA, PN San Rafael (Pier Cacciali May 2008).
