Review of 2019 and 2020 - Leafhoppers part 4: subfamily Deltocephalinae II

LEAFHOPPERS (CICADELLIDAE) continued


SUBFAMILY DELTOCEPHALINAE (continued)


Allygus mixtus - One on Oak at the meadows on 3rd August and one at Swanton Great Wood on 27th August 2019.  Added to my garden list in 2020 when I found one indoors on 12th August and one in the moth trap on 18th August.

Allygus mixtus, Swanton Great Wood, 27th August 2019

Allygus mixtus, North Elmham, 12th August 2020

Allygus mixtus, North Elmham, 19th August 2020

Euscelis incisus - Singles found at the meadows on 4 dates between 24th March and 6th May 2019 then another 2 on 22nd August.  A probable nymph there on 25th March 2020 and an adult on 8th May.

Euscelis incisus, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 29th March 2019

probable Euscelis incisus nymph, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 25th March 2020

Euscelis incisus, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 8th May 2020

Euscelis lineatus - A leafhopper found at the meadows on 20th July 2020 looked like this species but I lost it after taking photos.  I'd have preferred to have been able to examine it properly and am not sure if the ID is safe based on the photos alone so unless/until someone tells me otherwise I won't be formally recording it.  New to me if it is one.

probable Euscelis lineatus, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 20th July 2020

Mocydiopsis attenuata - One came to light at the meadows on 22nd April 2019.

Mocydiopsis attenuata, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 22nd April 2019

Thamnotettix dilutor - Found at the meadows on 13th July 2019 and 19th August 2020.  New for my garden in 2019 when one in my moth trap on 31st July.

Thamnotettix dilutior, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 13th July 2019

Thamnotettix dilutior, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows, 19th August 2020

Lamprotettix nitidulus - Totals of 6 in my garden moth trap between 31st July and 14th October 2019 and 10 between 24th July and 29th October 2020 (including 3 on 31st July).

Lamprotettix nitidulus, North Elmham, 31st July 2019

Lamprotettix nitidulus, North Elmham, 23rd September 2019 (with a close-up of its 'Honey Monster' scutellum)

Cicadula frontalis - One in my garden moth trap on 7th August 2020 was my second record following one in 2018.

Cicadula frontalis, North Elmham, 7th August 2020

Cicadula persimilis/quadrinotata - None.  A female of one or other of these species was found at the meadows in 2018.


Opsius stactogalus - None.  I'm not sure where my nearest Tamarisk is but I caught one of these in my garden in 2018.


Grypotes puncticollis - None.  Another one I caught here in 2018.


Macrosteles sexnotatus - Confirmed males in the garden moth trap on 30th and 31st July 2019 and another at the meadows on 3rd September.  Also a likely female at the meadows on 7th July but apparently identification is not safe without reference to the male genitalia/sternal apodemes.  Three in the garden moth trap between 30th July and 11th August 2020 were all unconfirmed females as was one at the meadows (on Imperforate St John's Wort in case that makes a difference) on 30th August.  A confirmed male to light at Whitwell Street on 3rd September.

male Macrosteles sexnotatus, North Elmham, 30th July 2019

male Macrosteles sexnotatus, Whitwell Street, 3rd September 2020

Balclutha punctata - Totals of 5 in the garden moth trap between 24th July and 30th August 2019 and 3 between 5th and 21st August 2020.  Also 2 to light at Swanton Great Wood on 27th August 2019.

Balclutha punctata, North Elmham, 6th August 2019

Balclutha punctata, North Elmham, 30th August 2019

Balclutha punctata, North Elmham, 5th August 2020

Next page: more leafoppers

Winterton mothing

Saturday 19th August was the night of the Norfolk Moth Survey event at Winterton.  I went along hoping for some good moths but the conditions were quite breezy so not ideal.  We still had a good time though.  There were no new moths for me (actually Stuart showed me leafmines of Sandhill Midget Phyllonorycter quinqueguttella which I've not seen before, but I don't count leafmines, especially vacated ones) but we recorded a few interesting species.

We'd hoped for some migrants and did indeed have a nice haul of 5 Scarce Bordered Straws, a species I'd only seen once before - but some variety on the migrant front would have been nice.  There were 6 White-points and a Diamond-back Moth but I'd been hoping for something a bit more interesting.

Scarce Bordered Straws, Winterton, 19th August

There were plenty of highlights though, including Hook-tipped Grass-veneer Platytes alpinella, Long-legged Tabby Synaphe punctalis, 13 Chevrons, 2 Peacock Moths, 6 White-line Darts, Coast Dart, 15 Archer's Darts, 10 True Lover's Knots, Dotted Clay, 2 Gold Spots and 2 Red Underwings.

Long-legged Tabby Synaphe punctalis, Winterton, 19th August

Chevron, Winterton, 19th August

White-line Dart, Winterton, 19th August

Coast Dart, Winterton, 19th August

Dotted Clay (male, gen det), Winterton, 19th August

Red Underwing, Winterton, 19th August

The other moths included Brown Birch Slender Parornix betulae, Birch Ermel Swammerdamia caesiella, Dull Red Groundling Bryotropha senectella, 2 Dusky Groundlings Aroga velocella, Pointed Groundling Scrobipalpa acuminatella, Chequered Fruit-tree Tortrix Pandemis corylana, Light Brown Apple Moth Epiphyas postvittana, 2 Birch Marbles Apotomis betuletana, 2 Small Birch Bells Epinotia ramella, Marbled Piercer Cydia splendana, Pearl Veneer Agriphila straminella, Common Grass-veneer Agriphila tristella, 42 Barred Grass-veneers Agriphila inquinatella, 3 Pearl Grass-veneers Catoptria pinella, 3 Ground-moss Greys Eudonia truncicolella, 2 Small Greys Eudonia mercurella, Heather Knot-horn Pempelia palumbella, 2 Scalloped Hook-tips, 3 Pebble Hook-tips, 2 Small Fan-footed Waves, 5 Narrow-winged Pugs, 3 Double-striped Pugs, Yellow-barred Brindle, 2 Canary-shouldered Thorns, Willow Beauty, 2 Light Emeralds, Poplar Hawk-moth, Iron Prominent, Lesser Swallow Prominent, Swallow Prominent, 2 Coxcomb Prominents, Garden Tiger, 2 Shuttle-shaped Darts, 16 Flame Shoulders, 20 Large Yellow Underwings, Lesser Yellow Underwing, Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing, 26 Lesser Broad-bordered Yellow Underwings, 14 Setaceous Hebrew Characters, 5 Six-striped Rustics, Nutmeg, 2 Cabbage Moths, 3 Common Wainscots, 10 Straw Underwings, Angle Shades, 5 Dark Arches, Rosy Rustic, Vine's Rustic, Pale Mottled Willow and 2 Burnished Brasses.

Birch Ermel Swammerdamia caesiella (female, gen det), Winterton, 19th August

Pointed Groundling Scrobipalpa acuminatella (male, gen det confirmed by Jon Clifton), Winterton, 19th August

The only caddisflies I noted were 3 Limnephilus marmoratus.  This weevil proved to be a new species for me, Hypera zoilus.

Hypera zoilus, Winterton, 19th August

I was uncertain about the ID of this leafhopper - it resembled Mocydiopsis attenuata but the length of the final abdominal segment seemed a good match for the photo on British Bugs of Mocydiopsis parvicauda.  That species normally lacks the dark spot in the clavus which this one had but the text in the website implied that it could possibly have the dark spot sometimes.  So I contacted Tony Irwin, an old friend and county recorder for leafhoppers among other things.  He noted a resemblance to Mocydiopsis intermedia, a species not recorded in Britain, but he was at pains to point out that it would probably turn out to be less exciting.  He later examined the insect for me and confirmed that it was Mocydiopsis attenuata - so not quite as exciting as a new species for Britain but perhaps still the best record of the night as Tony thinks it was new for the vice county.

Mocydiopsis attenuata (gen det by Tony Irwin), Winterton, 19th August