Potato leafhopper

Empoasca solana, commonly referred to as the potato leafhopper, is a significant agricultural pest belonging to the family Cicadellidae. These insects are small, wedge-shaped, and highly mobile, characterized by their ability to jump and fly rapidly when disturbed, making them difficult to track in the field.

The host range of this species is extensive, covering a wide variety of economically important plants. It primarily attacks crops in the Solanaceae family, including potatoes, tomatoes, and eggplants, but it is also known to infest beans, legumes, and various cucurbits. Weeds often act as overwintering sites, allowing the population to migrate to commercial crops in the spring.

The life cycle of this pest consists of egg, nymph, and adult stages. Females insert eggs into the stems or leaf veins of the host plant. Nymphs go through several molting stages, feeding on plant sap throughout their development. In warm climates, the reproductive cycle is continuous, potentially resulting in several overlapping generations in a single growing season.

The damage caused by Empoasca solana is primarily due to their feeding habits. As they feed, they inject toxic saliva into the plant tissues, leading to the characteristic condition known as «hopperburn». This causes the leaves to curl, yellow at the edges, and eventually turn brown and necrotic, which severely impairs the plant's ability to photosynthesize and reduces yields.

Effective control measures require an integrated pest management (IPM) strategy. This involves:

• monitoring fields regularly using yellow sticky cards;
• maintaining good weed control to eliminate alternate hosts;
• using resistant cultivars when available;
• applying selective insecticides based on economic thresholds to minimize impact on beneficial insects.