Planthopper

Description:

Hemiptera; Fulgoromorpha; Fulgoroidea; Dictyopharidae; Dictyopharinae; Orthopagini; Orthopagus philippinus Melchar, 1914. I am reasonably sure that my specimen above is a female, based on comparison with male and female specimens displayed in https://zse.pensoft.net/article/26859/zo... "Orthopagus philippinus can be easily recognized from other species of the genus by the shape of the head and the presence of a relatively large roundish dark spot at base of frons which is present in all specimens studied." https://zse.pensoft.net/article/26859/el... This article aslo states "(Orthopagus philippinus is) so far only known from the Luzon, Philippines". I am always more interested in endemic species in our Province.

Habitat:

My wife and I were in our back porch having a coffee, at around 8:15 a.m. when this insect landed on the table. Obviously, a plastic garden table is not much of a habitat description. So I will elaborate a little. From the back porch, we look out on a fair sized vegetable plot which is just about bare at this time of year, but there are still some remnants of Okra and Cucumber. There are flower beds all around this plot and there is always a variety of plants in bloom, all year round. There are Mango Trees, Mahogany Trees, various Citrus Trees, some stands of Bamboo and a stretch of Rice Field (lying fallow at this time of year). So it is a diverse habitat which supports numerous local species.

Notes:

Thanks to Mark Ridgeway for identifying this one for me so promptly. He was still helping me with advisory comments at a comfortable 9:00 p.m. for me, but around 11:00 p.m. in his part of Australia. If we could all help each other like this, the world would be a better place. Thanks, Mark.