Beet leafhopper

Beet leafhopper
Beet leafhopper
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hemiptera
Family: Cicadellidae
Genus: Circulifer
Species: C. tenellus
Binomial name
Circulifer tenellus
(Baker, 1896)

The beet leafhopper (Circulifer tenellus) is a species of leafhopper with a longer, thinner build than most. It is found across much of the United States and Mexico, in South Africa and from the countries around the Mediterranean Sea to Central Asia [1].

Disease

The beet leafhopper is the carrier of the dreaded curly top virus. A single feeding from a beet leafhopper can infect a nightshade plant like tobacco, tomato, chili pepper, or eggplant, infecting it and rendering it useless for agriculture.

Control

Aside from some pesticides, the beet leafhopper can be managed by companion planting, it is repelled by marigolds, while both petunias and Pelargonium geraniums act as trap crops, drawing them away.

References

  1. ^ "Distribution maps of quarantine pests for Europe: Circulifer tenellus". European and Mediterranean Plant Protection Organization. 2006-09-19. http://pqr.eppo.org/datas/CIRCTE/CIRCTE.pdf.