What is a glassy winged sharpshooter?
The glassy-winged sharpshooter (Homalodisca vitripennis, formerly known as H. coagulata) is a large leafhopper insect from the family Cicadellidae, similar to other species of sharpshooter.
Where did the Sharpshooter come from?
The glassy-winged sharpshooter, Homalodisca vitripennis (formerly H. coagulata ), is an insect that was introduced into California in the late 1980s. This insect is native to the southeastern United States and was most likely brought into southern California accidentally as egg masses in ornamental or agricultural plant foliage.
What is a glassy winged sharpshooter egg mass?
Glassy-winged sharpshooter egg mass with parasitoid emergence holes. The glassy-winged sharpshooter, Homalodisca vitripennis (formerly H. coagulata ), is an insect that was introduced into California in the late 1980s.
Where are glassy-winged sharpshooter found in California?
The prevalence of the glassy-winged sharpshooter is highest in citrus plants. Since the introduction of the winged glass sharpshooter, its numbers keep increasing. As a result of the spread, the pest is all over southern California, San Diego, Orange Riverside, Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Santa Barbara and Kern counties.
Where did the glassy-winged sharpshooter come from?
coagulata), is an insect that was introduced into California in the late 1980s. This insect is native to the southeastern United States and was most likely brought into southern California accidentally as egg masses in ornamental or agricultural plant foliage.
Why is the glassy-winged sharpshooter?
The glassy-winged sharpshooter is a serious pest of grapes because it acts as a vector of the strain of Xylella fastidiosa that causes Pierce's disease in vineyards. It also vectors the strain that causes oleander leaf scorch in oleander.
What eats glassy-winged sharpshooter?
One of the most effective is a small wasp that feeds on the pest's egg masses. Praying mantis, assassin bugs and lacewings are also extremely beneficial at managing glassy winged sharpshooters.
How big are glassy-winged sharpshooter?
These sharpshooters are about 12 millimetres (0.5 in) in length. Their color is dark brown to black with black-and-yellow undersides, with yellow eyes, and the upper parts of the head and back are speckled with ivory or yellowish spots. The wings are transparent with reddish veins.
Do sharpshooters bite?
Glassy-winged sharpshooters are a serious threat to California's grape industry because they transmit Pierce's Disease. Pierce's Disease is caused by a bacteria species that clogs a plant's vascular system and can kill a grapevine within three years of initial infection.
Can you make your own insecticidal soap?
Can I make my own insecticidal soap? Certainly! By mixing 2.5 tablespoons of vegetable oil and 2.5 tablespoons of pure liquid soap with 1 gallon of distilled water, you'll have a whole gallon of insecticidal soap for safely spraying plants in flowerbeds or the vegetable garden.
How does Pierce's disease spread?
Xyella fastidiosa is a bacterium that lives in the water-conducting system (the xylem) of host plants and is spread from plant to plant by sap-feeding insects that feed on xylem fluid. Symptoms appear when significant blockage occurs within xylem vessels due to the growth of the bacteria.
How do I get rid of leafhoppers?
Although chemical treatment is seldom recommended, many conventional insecticides are effective against leafhoppers. Those containing pyrethrins like Bonide Pyrethrin Garden Insect Spray Mix, or bifenthrin, such as Ortho BugClear Insect Killer, are good options.
What is a glassy-winged sharpshooter?
coagulata) is a large leafhopper insect from the family Cicadellidae, similar to other species of sharpshooter .
What is the name of the water that sharpshooters squirt?
While feeding, sharpshooters squirt small droplets of waste from the anus (filtered xylem fluid, basically water with trace solutes, especially carbohydrates ), often called "leafhopper rain.". These droplets are messy and, when the water evaporates, leave a residue that gives plants and fruit a whitewashed appearance.
What are the host plants for sharpshooters?
Among the hosts are grapes, citrus trees, almonds, stone fruit, and oleanders. Because of the large number of hosts, glassy-winged sharpshooter populations are able to flourish in both agricultural and urban areas.
What color are a squid?
Their color is dark brown to black with black-and-yellow undersides, with yellow eyes, and the upper parts of the head and back are speckled with ivory or yellowish spots. The wings are transparent with reddish veins. They have piercing, sucking mouthparts and rows of fine spines on their hind legs.
Where do sharpshooters lay their eggs?
Glassy-winged sharpshooters usually lay a mass of eggs on the underside of leaves, and they cover them with powdery white protective secretions kept in dry form (called " brochosomes ") on the wings. After the nymphs hatch, the remaining egg mass leaves a brown mark on the leaf's surface.
Where do nymphs feed?
The nymphs feed within the vascular system of the small stems on the plant where the eggs were deposited . After several molts, the nymphs become adult glassy-winged sharpshooters. The glassy-winged sharpshooter feeds on a wide variety of plants.
Where is the sage plant native to?
It is native to North America (northeastern Mexico), but it was accidentally introduced into Southern California in the early 1990s, probably with ornamental or agricultural stock. There it has become an agricultural pest especially to viticulture.
Why is GWSS a social nuisance?
Because nutrients are diluted in xylem fluid, GWSS must process large volumes to meet nutritional needs. Thus, this pest produces copious amounts of watery excreta and are a social nuisance as the liquid rains down from large populations feeding on ornamental trees.
What does GWSS feed on?
It has a large plant-host range and is especially abundant on citrus. Damage: GWSS feeds on plants through straw-like mouthparts inserted into the xylem tissue which conducts water throughout the plant. Because nutrients are diluted in xylem fluid, GWSS must process large volumes to meet nutritional needs.
How much money did Caltrans lose for oleanders?
It is estimated that Caltrans alone stands to suffer at least a $52 million loss if oleander on highway plantings is lost. In the city of Tustin (Orange County), approximately $200,000 was requisitioned to pay for removal of oleanders maintained on city greenbelts and for replanting other ornamental species.
What is the best known disease of grapevines?
Different strains of this bacterium induce severe diseases in many agricultural and ornamental plants. The best known of these maladies is Pierce's disease of grapevines.
What crops are at risk for Pierce's disease?
Other crops at risk include almonds (almond leaf scorch), and alfalfa (alfalfa dwarf), which are infected by the same strain of X.f. thatinduces Pierce's disease, and potentially other ornamental and fruit trees. If playback doesn't begin shortly, try restarting your device.
Where is the GWSS found?
The GWSS can now be found in highpopulations in areas of San Diego, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, Los Angeles, Ventura, Kern and Santa Barbara counties.
What are long term solutions?
Long term solutions involve the introduction of biological control agents that attack the eggs of GWSS, techniques that insert genes into host plants that confer resistance or tolerance to X. fastidosa, or other xylem-limited bacteria that interfere with the pathogen's reproduction, movement, and vector transmission.
How to control glassy winged sharpshooter?
There are a few options for managing glassy winged sharpshooter insects in the garden. A healthy population of beneficial insects is the single most effective way to control sharpshooters. One of the most effective is a small wasp that feeds on the pest’s egg masses. Praying mantis, assassin bugs and lacewings are also extremely beneficial ...
Why is sharpshooter pest control important?
When a pest feeds on an affected plant, the bacterium multiplies in the pest’s mouth and is transferred when the sharpshooter moves on to feed on a different plant. Preventing spread of dangerous plant diseases is the reason why careful control of sharpshooter pests in gardens is so critical.
What are the pests that are in my garden?
Sharpshooter pests in gardens are a real problem for fruit trees and a wide range of plants, including: Asparagus. Grape. Crepe myrtle. Sunflower. Blueberries. Bougainvillea. Peppers.
Where are glassy winged sharpshooters native to?
What is a glassy winged sharpshooter? This harmful pest, native to the Southeastern United States and Mexico, is a type of large leafhopper that feeds on fluids in tissues of various plants.
Do soaps kill nymphs?
Insecticidal soaps and horticultural oils don’t kill the eggs, but they will kill the nymphs and prevent the production of the sticky excrement.
What is oleander leaf scorch?
For more information on oleander leaf scorch, see the Pest Notes: Oleander Leaf Scorch. When a glassy-winged sharpshooter feeds on a plant that is infected with X. fastidiosa, it may acquire the bacteria, which attaches to and multiplies within specific portions of the insect’s mouthparts.
What diseases does X fastidiosa cause?
Other strains of X. fastidiosa cause phony peach disease, plum leaf scald, bacterial leaf scorch in a wide range of shade trees (sycamore, elm, maple, oak), citrus variegated chlorosis, coffee leaf scorch, and olive quick decline disease, but these diseases have not been confirmed in California.
How do sharpshooters get their nutrients?
The glassy-winged sharpshooter is a large leafhopper that obtains its nutrients by feeding on plant fluids in the xylem, the water-conducting tissues of a plant. Feeding on plants rarely causes significant plant damage, although the insects do excrete copious amounts of liquid that can make leaves and fruit appear whitewashed when dry. The excrement, which is not necessarily damaging, can be a cosmetic nuisance when shade trees are heavily infested, because cars parked under the trees tend to become spotted. Additionally, during hot weather, large populations of glassy-winged sharpshooters feeding on small plants may cause them to wilt.
What is a yellow sticky card?
Yellow sticky cards are the preferred monitoring method for government agencies that track glassy-winged sharpshooter populations. If you find one of these cards on your property, direct any questions or inquiries to the phone number indicated on the trap. Cultural Control.
How many generations does a glassy-winged sharpshooter have?
In Southern California and in the San Joaquin Valley, the glassy-winged sharpshooter typically has two generations per year.
What is the color of a sharpshooter's abdomen?
The abdomen is whitish or yellow. The head is brown to black and covered with numerous ivory to yellowish spots. These spots help distinguish glassy-winged sharpshooter from a close relative, smoke-tree sharpshooter ( Homalodisca liturata ), which is native to the desert region of Southern California.
Why are shade trees wilting?
The excrement, which is not necessarily damaging, can be a cosmetic nuisance when shade trees are heavily infested, because cars parked under the trees tend to become spotted. Additionally, during hot weather, large populations of glassy-winged sharpshooters feeding on small plants may cause them to wilt.
What is the fungus that lays its eggs in the eggs of the glassy-eyed sharpshoo
Figure 8. Adult Gonatocerus triguttatus Girault, a wasp parasitoid, lays its eggs in the eggs of the glassy-winged sharpshooter, Homalodisca vitripennis (Germar), ...
Where is Homalodisca vitripennis found?
Turner and Pollard (1959) describe the range of Homalodisca vitripennis as a strictly southern species, abundant from the latitude of Augusta, Georgia to Leesburg, Florida, having a western boundary of ValVerde and Edwards counties in Te xas. Current distribution data shows that the sharpshooter is present to some extent in south Florida as well.
Where do glassy-winged sharpshooters live?
The glassy-winged sharpshooter, Homalodisca vitripennis (Germar), is a large leafhopper species native to the southeastern United States. It is one of the main vectors of the bacterium Xylella fastidiosa, a plant pathogen that causes a variety of plant diseases, including phony peach disease of peach and Pierce's disease of grape.
What do sharpshooters eat?
Preferred plants depend on the season and locality, but, in general, the preferred species include crape myrtle, citrus, and holly. Glassy-winged sharpshooters tend to feed on last-year's growth and meristematic growth (Mizell and French 1987), and excrete copious amounts of liquid as they feed.
What plants are used for oviposition?
Preferred plants for oviposition may include holly, sunflower and citrus. Strict nutrient requirements for young nymphs are believed to be important factors in the choice of plants for oviposition. As the female lays her eggs, she covers them with a white material scraped from deposits on her fore wings.
Is Xylella fastidiosa in Florida?
The incidence of Xylella fastidiosa in field populations of the glassy-winged sharpshooter in California is not well-studied. In Florida, however, natural infectivity of the glassy-winged leafhopper is very low (Alderz and Hopkins 1979).
What kind of bird has a red wing?
Glassy-winged sharpshooters have large smoky-brown wings with red markings and are very good flyers, making them able to transmit plant diseases further than other vector leafhoppers, such as the blue-green leafhopper.
How Does A Glassy Winged Sharpshooter Look Like?
For effective control and management, it is worth knowing how the glassy-winged sharpshooter looks. Once you see the appearance of the glassy-winged pest, you can easily spot it and take effective control against it before its spreads to the rest of your farm.
Are Glassy Winged Sharpshooters Bad For Your Plants?
Sharpshooters are damaging to your plants and can cause significant loss in the long run.
What Eats Glassy Winged Sharp Shooter?
Biological control of glassy-winged sharpshooters comprises the use of beneficial insects that keep the pest at bay. Below are some of the insects that eat the glassy-winged sharpshooter.
How Did The Glassy Winged Sharpshooter Get To The United States?
Eggs on a nursery stalk or some private plant material possibly introduced the glassy-winged sharpshooter from the Southeastern United States.
How Do You Control The Sharpshooter?
Despite being more significant than leafhoppers, the glassy-winged sharpshooter can be inconspicuous as its color camouflages it to its environment.
Frequently Asked Questions
Preventative measures are ideal when it comes to treating Pierce’s disease. However, during the dormant season, you can remove affected vines. You should also rogue vines showing foliar symptoms to prevent the spread of the infection.
Overview
The glassy-winged sharpshooter (Homalodisca vitripennis, formerly known as H. coagulata) is a large leafhopper insect from the family Cicadellidae, similar to other species of sharpshooter.
Description
These sharpshooters are about 12 millimetres (0.5 in) in length. Their color is dark brown to black with black-and-yellow undersides, with yellow eyes, and the upper parts of the head and back are speckled with ivory or yellowish spots. The wings are transparent with reddish veins.
They have piercing, sucking mouthparts and rows of fine spines on their hind l…
Distribution
It is native to North America (northeastern Mexico), but it was accidentally introduced into Southern California in the early 1990s, probably with ornamental or agricultural stock. There it has become an agricultural pest especially to viticulture.
Glassy-winged sharpshooters usually lay a mass of eggs on the underside of leaves, and they cover them with powdery white protective secretions kept in dry form (called "brochosomes") o…
Management
Successful efforts using integrated pest management (IPM) of the glassy-winged sharpshooter include the use of insecticides, parasitoids (especially wasps in the family Mymaridae), and the impact of naturally occurring pathogens like viruses, bacteria, and fungi.
One of the newly discovered pathogens is a virus specific to sharpshooters. The leafhopper-infecting virus, Homalodisca coagulata virus-1 (HoCV-1, Dicistroviridae), has been shown to incr…
Further reading
• Grandgirard, J., M.S. Hoddle, G.K. Roderick, J.N. Petit, D. Percy, R. Putoa, C. Garnier, and N. Davies. 2006. Invasion of French Polynesia by the Glassy-Winged Sharpshooter, Homalodisca coagulata (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae): A New Threat to the South Pacific. Pacific Science, 60:4, 429-438.
• Hoddle M.S., Grandgirard J., Petit J., Roderick G.K., Davies N., 2006. Glassy-winged sharpshooter Ko'ed - First round - in French Polynesia. Biocontrol News and Information 27(3), 4…
External links
• PIPRA - Pierce's Disease Website
• CDFA PD/GWSS Board Interactive Forum
• Organization fighting the potential of infestation in Northern California
• Biocontrol of the GWSS in French Polynesia
Background
Identification and Biology
- The glassy-winged sharpshooter is a large insect compared to other leafhoppers. Adults are approximately 1⁄2 inch long and are generally dark brown to black when viewed from the top or side. Wings are clear with red venation that fades as they age, but they appear dark brown due to the body coloration beneath them. The abdomen is whitish or yellow. The head is brown to blac…
Management
- For areas where the glassy-winged sharpshooter is not established, it continues to be important to identify new infestations as soon as possible. This requires careful monitoring and detection. If you find glassy-winged sharpshooter in an area not currently known to have this pest, immediately call the California Department of Food & Agriculture pest hotline at 1-800-491-1899, or contact y…
References
- Varela LG, Smith RJ, Phillips PA. 2001. Pierce’s Disease. UC ANR Publication 21600. Oakland, CA. Wilen CA, Hartin JS, Henry JM, Costa HS, Blua M, Purcell AH. April 2008. Pest Notes: Oleander Leaf Scorch. UC ANR Publication 7480. Oakland, CA.
Suggested Reading
- For current information regarding glassy-winged sharpshooter see the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) website. For a map of infested sites in California see the CDFA website. For more information on plant diseases caused by Xylella fastidiosa, see the University of California, Berkeley website.
Publication Information
- Pest Notes: Glassy-winged Sharpshooter UC ANR Publication 7492 AUTHORS: Lucia G. Varela, UC Statewide IPM Program/UC Cooperative Extension, Sonoma County, Cheryl A. Wilen, UC Statewide IPM Program/UC Cooperative Extension, San Diego County, Matthew P. Daugherty, Entomology, UC Riverside, and David R. Haviland, UC Cooperative Extension, Kern County. TECHNICAL EDITO…