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1 October 2008 Host Plants of Leptoglossus oppositus (Say) (Hemiptera: Coreidae)
Paula Levin Mitchell, A. G. Wheeler Jr.
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Abstract

Here we report new host plant records for the coreid Leptoglossus oppositus (Say) and summarize the available host plant data from the literature. Our collection records add six new host associations to the known information for L. oppositus (bald cypress, trumpet creeper, American beautyberry, sunflower, tuliptree, and red mulberry) and corroborate published observations of this species on catalpa, jimsonweed, pecan, and tomato. Breeding hosts range from annual crops to vines, shrubs, and trees, and include gymnosperms, monocots and dicots from 15 families. Adding adult records to this total yields 22 families and 29 genera as potential or actual food plants. Field observations, coupled with published accounts, indicate that nymphs are strongly associated with the presence of host reproductive structures, although adults may be collected on host plants during non-fruiting periods. Overlap with congeners [e.g., L. phyllopus (L.), L.corculus (Say)] occurs on several host plant species. Like the leaffooted bug (L. phyllopus), L. oppositus appears to be a specialist on reproductive structures but highly polyphagous.

Paula Levin Mitchell and A. G. Wheeler Jr. "Host Plants of Leptoglossus oppositus (Say) (Hemiptera: Coreidae)," Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington 110(4), 1034-1041, (1 October 2008). https://doi.org/10.4289/0013-8797-110.4.1034
Published: 1 October 2008
KEYWORDS
bald cypress
breeding host
diet breadth
mulberry
polyphagy
tuliptree
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