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Project Noah Nature School
Alotartessus iambe
This Leafhopper is common on young tree stems in Brisbane Eucalyptus forest. They are attended by different species of ants. The ants come for their honey dew. The treehoppers suck the plant juice. Within the juice, there are water and sugar more than the leafhoppers need. They are excreted as honeydew. The body colours of the Brown Leafhopper nymphs are quite different from their adults. Their colours are even different in different instars stages.
Spotted on Dec 11, 2012
Submitted on Dec 11, 2012
7 Comments
This is the adult ... http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/999...
Thanks Gilma Jeannette Ospino Ferreira-Norman..
Great spotting, Christiane. I also followed tree-hopers and the ants were always there also. That little one is gorgeous!!
I have watch these ants and their "COWS" for a couple of week now.. The ant start with the eggs and look after the hoppers nymphs till they are adults. It is amazing.
If I remember correctly, some leafhoppers produce a sweet, sugary waste that is desirable from the ants, resulting in what Jason calls, "ant-attendants."
Thanks JasonCryan.. Have you seen this before? Do you know why the ants look after the leafhopper?
Yup....looks like exactly what's going on...leafhopper nymphs with ant-attendants. Cool pics!