First Report of Corn Leafhopper (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae) in the USA Midwest Suction Trap Network

Authors

Doris M. Lagos-Kutz, Illinois Natural History Survey-Prairie Research Institute, University of Illinois at Urbana-ChampaignFollow
Isabel Plasencia, University of Illinois at Urbana-ChampaignFollow
Christopher H. Dietrich, Illinois Natural History Survey-Prairie Research Institute, University of Illinois at Urbana-ChampaignFollow
Joseph LaForest, University of GeorgiaFollow
Brian McCornack, Manhattan State UniversityFollow
Erin Hodgson, Iowa State UniversityFollow
Raul T. Villanueva, University of KentuckyFollow
Nicholas J. Seiter, University of Illinois at Urbana-ChampaignFollow
Anthony M. McMechan, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
Michael S. Crossley, University of DelawareFollow
Steven J. Clough, United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service, Urbana, IllinoisFollow

Document Type

Article

Date of this Version

2025

Citation

Insecta Mundi (2025) 1110

February 28, 2025

ZooBank registration urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:685E13F0-9241-495F-A91D-899AFAC4470F

Comments

United States government work

Abstract

Corn leafhopper, Dalbulus maidis (DeLong and Wolcott) (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae), is native to Central and South America, but invasive in the United States. This species is a threat to corn, Zea mays L., one of the main crops of economic importance in the US, because it is also a vector of three pathogens responsible for corn stunt diseases complex: corn stunt spiroplasma (CSS), maize bushy stunt phytoplasma (MBSP), and maize rayado fino virus (MRFV). Therefore, monitoring the dispersal of this pest is necessary to document its geographic expansion and anticipate the incidence of corn stunt disease. Based on trap catches obtained from the Midwest Suction Trap Network in 2024, corn leafhopper populations increased late in the growing season in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, and Wisconsin. We will continue to monitor the dispersal of this invasive species through the Midwest Suction Trap Network to provide information to researchers, extension agents, and producers regarding this agronomically important pest.