Had a wonderful evening at Tandy Hills -- set up a few blacklights and a bunch of bugs came!
Seen while blacklighting during the 2023 Carysfort Bioblitz. Thanks to Trudy F for meeting me at 2:30AM to let me in to this wonderful area!. I set up two sheets about 15 meters apart (location listed is accurate), using cheapy DJ blacklights connected to USB battery packs. It was fairly windy, making for difficult macro photography conditions and I probably didn't do the best job at documenting everything at the sheets. I didn't photograph much of the extra tiny stuff (less than 4mm) due to the windy conditions. Mosquitoes were pretty thick, which also made it difficult to focus on the bugs on the sheet. I was joined by Stefan Rhoades and Andres Vila later in the night, and some of our observations may overlap.
Project here: https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/2023-carysfort-bioblitz
Blacklighting observations from this event:
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations?nelat=25.445871537847147&nelng=-80.19031613683939&on=2023-04-01&place_id=any&project_id=blacklighting-florida&swlat=25.20878570378058&swlng=-80.40454953527689
Info about the cheapy DJ blacklights I used, great for getting started with blacklighting: https://www.inaturalist.org/journal/damontighe/11836-diy-moth-light
Here's a video showing the DJ blacklights in action at the Pinecrest campground (Big Cypress) from Summer 2019: https://youtu.be/tavmTa7WoPk
Blacklighting project for Florida on iNaturalist: https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/blacklighting-florida
Exciting! Instantly recognizable as the new genus & species first photographed by @chloe_and_trevor & identified as that by C.R. Bartlett: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/107311379
Some notes:
1) Collected four specimens, two in 90% alcohol. Will deposit them in a collection (e.g., UC Riverside or could send them to UDelaware if there is interest)
2) Likely host-specific on Bebbia juncea. I consistently found them on Bebbia, but not on any other plants in the area. Should make collecting these much easier...
3) The darkness of the wing band seems quite variable
4) Not sure the status of this, e.g., if a description effort is already underway. But would be great to get this described (and perhaps also to be involved)
Eutettix (Typical Leafhoppers). Photographed at Reserve de La Chara Pinta, Sinaloa, Mexico on 28 April 2022.
Gyponini (Typical Leafhoppers). Photographed at Reserve de La Chara Pinta, Sinaloa, Mexico on 30 April 2022.
was digging through a well rotted oak log and found several white egg-like objects measuring around 5-7 mm across, which were loosely attached to the surrounding rotting wood and had a firm rubbery texture. I broke a couple open and they turned out to be hollow and contained these weird little planthopper nymphs. They appeared to be in different stages of development- one of them (photos 3 and 6) was larger, had black and white markings and larger wingbuds while the other (slides 1 and 2) was smaller and pale with shorter wingbuds, implying that they probably develop inside the balls
There was no obvious sign of plant roots or any living plant life growing on the log (the section of log was suspended above the ground as well) so my personal theory is that they’re fungus feeders, like nymphs of some achilid and derbid planthoppers.
Perhaps the balls are made of fungal tissue (note in photos 4 and 5 that some of them have what appears to be mycelial threads clinging to or even merged with the balls) and are a sort of “fungal gall” that surrounds and nourishes the nymphs? Since they apparently develop in the balls and there doesn’t seem to be a way for them to enter and exit I don’t see how they would feed unless their nourishment came from the ball itself.
Alternately i suppose it could be of plant origin (though I find that unlikely since didn’t see any plants or roots near them) or made from the wax secretion many planthoppers produce, but that doesn’t explain how they feed, unless they only use the balls as a shelter for molting or something? (though once again that feels unlikely to me)
I collected some intact balls and some of the rotting wood they were in for further examination and to see if I can rear out the adults.