Leafhopper - Blog Posts

enjoying the variation in these handsome Graphocephala versuta, including the last poor hopper who has a mite sucking on its head

He is literally me

Flat-headed leafhopper, Titura sp., Ledrinae, Cicadellidae

Photographed in Malaysia by Nicky Bay // Website // Facebook

Shared with permission; do not remove credit or re-post!

Bugs love to interrupt my gardening by flying into my view and staying for pictures, the beetle even struck some poses

Coppery Leafhoppers (Jikradia olitoria), nymphs, taken May, 2025, in Georgia, US

A small collection of J. olitoria nymphs to showcase how variable they can be, even when found in the same place! Even with all this color, some colorations are still missing—green and brown most notably. Despite their highly variable colors, these nymphs can still be easily IDed due to shared pattern traits and their signature curled posture, which they only share with a few other leafhoppers (in the US and Canada). I feel like a Pokémon collector trying to collect all the forms of this species' nymph when I put them all side by side like this lol!

Red-banded Leafhopper (Graphocephala coccinea), taken May 21, 2025, in Georgia, US

I've begun seeing G. coccinea about! This leafhopper's patterning is quite variable, often overlapping with the patterning of G. fennahi, the Rhododendron Leafhopper, and making it hard to ID. If the leafhopper has any hint of an isolated stripe on the wing (seen very clearly in this image), it is G. coccinea, as G. fennahi's stripe connects fully to the edge of the wing. It can also be helpful to check if the leafhopper is feeding on the plant it sits on and documenting what the plant is, as G. fennahi is only known to feed on rhododendron species while G. coccinea is far less picky and feeds from a wide variety of herbaceous plants!

Coppery Leafhopper (Jikradia olitoria), nymph, taken May 18, 2025, in Georgia, US

Some out of focus images of my son because I love him so much.. I saw him again yesterday on the same plant, so he must like it where he is lol. Even after seeing tons of these guys, I still can't get over how cute they are, especially as nymphs! Their large, charismatic eyes, bright colors, and little dances have captivated me, I fear.

Coppery Leafhopper (Jikradia olitoria), nymph, taken April 12, 2025, in Georgia, US

A teeny leafhopper nymph on a flower stem! My favorite leafhopper species is finally returning for the year! I can't wait for these nymphs to grow larger and gain their bright colors. The ones in this area tend to be orange and green, though nymphs of this species are highly variable, also coming in yellow, tan, brown, black, red, and white. All young nymphs look like this individual, being very dark brown and, in later instars, gain their unique colors!

Leafhopper (Genus Gyponana), nymph, taken March 25, 2025, in Georgia, US

Sometimes life is just a leafhopper dancing... This guy was tiiiiny, probably only 1st or 2nd instar, and he was not a fan of me, as is evident by his defensive dancing! When threatened, leafhopper nymphs (and sometimes adults) will sway back and forth like this to both mimic windblown debris and skew a potential predator's perception of their form. Obviously, this has little effect on humans, but it can save their life if a smaller predator takes interest. Leafhoppers are wonderful animals, and this is one of the many reasons why they're some of my favorites!

Versute Sharpshooters (Graphocephala versuta), taken October 15, 2023, in Georgia, US

Some beautiful "red morph" versute sharpshooters looking all snug in some leaves! These photos were taken in their favorite little patch of plants—tall with long, tightly packed leaves for good protection and lots of surface area. I always find lots of G. versuta in there, though I often find G. coccinea (Red-banded Leafhopper) and many other assorted species of leafhoppers in the patch as well!

Coppery Leafhopper (Jikradia olitoria), female, taken August 24, 2024, in Georgia, US

Quite plain looking, but one of my favorite creatures in the life... This is a female leafhopper ovipositing (laying eggs) into the bark of an oak tree!

The ovipositors of Cicadomorphans (cicadas, leafhoppers, treehoppers, and spittlebugs) are reinforced with metals like manganese, zinc, and iron to make them strong enough to saw into bark, stems, and—in the cicada's case—straight into the woody branches of trees! These are some of my favorite insects, and J. olitoria is a local I've grown fond of seeing.

Here is the paper that goes into depth about the structure of the cicada ovipositor!