Auchenorrhyncha
Encyclopedia
The Auchenorrhyncha is the suborder of the Hemiptera
which contains most of the familiar members of what was called the Homoptera - groups such as cicada
s, leafhopper
s, treehopper
s, planthopper
s, and spittlebugs. The aphid
s and scale insect
s are the other well-known "Homoptera", and they are in the suborder Sternorrhyncha
. Lesser-known insects largely regarded as Homoptera are the Coleorrhyncha
. However, the taxonomic
status of the Hemiptera
and Homoptera
is currently under investigation and discussion. See Heteroptera
and Prosorrhyncha
for more information on such points.
Distributed worldwide, all members of this group are plant-feeders, and many are vectors of viral and fungal diseases of plants.
It is also common for Auchenorrhyncha to produce either audible sounds or substrate vibrations as a form of communication. Such calls range from vibrations inaudible to humans, to the calls of many species of cicadas
that can be heard for hundreds of metres at least. In season they produce the most characteristic and ubiquitous noise of the bush.
) and the Archaeorrhyncha (= Fulgoromorpha). In the last 10 years there has been evidence to support this interpretation, and the most recent research indicates that the Auchenorrhyncha are indeed a paraphyletic lineage.
A classification of the Auchenorrhyncha is as follows:
Hemiptera
Hemiptera is an order of insects most often known as the true bugs , comprising around 50,000–80,000 species of cicadas, aphids, planthoppers, leafhoppers, shield bugs, and others...
which contains most of the familiar members of what was called the Homoptera - groups such as cicada
Cicada
A cicada is an insect of the order Hemiptera, suborder Auchenorrhyncha , in the superfamily Cicadoidea, with large eyes wide apart on the head and usually transparent, well-veined wings. There are about 2,500 species of cicada around the world, and many of them remain unclassified...
s, leafhopper
Leafhopper
Leafhopper is a common name applied to any species from the family Cicadellidae. Leafhoppers, colloquially known as hoppers, are minute plant-feeding insects in the superfamily Membracoidea in the order Hemiptera...
s, treehopper
Treehopper
Treehoppers and thorn bugs are members of the family Membracidae, a group of insects related to the cicadas and the leafhoppers. There are about 3,200 known species of treehoppers in over 600 genera...
s, planthopper
Planthopper
A planthopper is any insect in the infraorder Fulgoromorpha within the Hemiptera. The name comes from their remarkable resemblance to leaves and other plants of their environment and from the fact that they often "hop" for quick transportation in a similar way to that of grasshoppers. However,...
s, and spittlebugs. The aphid
Aphid
Aphids, also known as plant lice and in Britain and the Commonwealth as greenflies, blackflies or whiteflies, are small sap sucking insects, and members of the superfamily Aphidoidea. Aphids are among the most destructive insect pests on cultivated plants in temperate regions...
s and scale insect
Scale insect
The scale insects are small insects of the order Hemiptera, generally classified as the superfamily Coccoidea. There are about 8,000 species of scale insects.-Ecology:...
s are the other well-known "Homoptera", and they are in the suborder Sternorrhyncha
Sternorrhyncha
Sternorrhyncha is a suborder of the Hemiptera which contains the aphids, whiteflies, and scale insects, groups which were traditionally included in the order Homoptera. "Sternorrhyncha" refers to the rearward position of the mouthparts relative to the head...
. Lesser-known insects largely regarded as Homoptera are the Coleorrhyncha
Coleorrhyncha
Peloridiidae is a family of true bugs, comprising 17 genera and 36 species. They are small, ranging in length from 2 to 4 mm, rarely seen, peculiarly lumpy, flattened bugs found in Patagonia , New Zealand, eastern Australia, Lord Howe Island and New Caledonia. All the Peloridiidae species are...
. However, the taxonomic
Biological classification
Biological classification, or scientific classification in biology, is a method to group and categorize organisms by biological type, such as genus or species. Biological classification is part of scientific taxonomy....
status of the Hemiptera
Hemiptera
Hemiptera is an order of insects most often known as the true bugs , comprising around 50,000–80,000 species of cicadas, aphids, planthoppers, leafhoppers, shield bugs, and others...
and Homoptera
Homoptera
Homoptera is a deprecated suborder of order Hemiptera; recent morphological studies and DNA analysis strongly suggests that the order is paraphyletic. It was therefore split into the suborders Sternorrhyncha, Auchenorrhyncha, and Coleorrhyncha....
is currently under investigation and discussion. See Heteroptera
Heteroptera
Heteroptera is a group of about 40,000 species of insects in the Hemiptera. Sometimes called "true bugs", that name more commonly refers to Hemiptera as a whole, and "typical bugs" might be used as a more unequivocal alternative since among the Hemiptera the heteropterans are most consistently and...
and Prosorrhyncha
Prosorrhyncha
The name Prosorrhyncha is a name for a suborder of Hemiptera, comprising a grouping of the traditional taxon "Heteroptera" plus its sister taxon, the family Peloridiidae...
for more information on such points.
Distributed worldwide, all members of this group are plant-feeders, and many are vectors of viral and fungal diseases of plants.
It is also common for Auchenorrhyncha to produce either audible sounds or substrate vibrations as a form of communication. Such calls range from vibrations inaudible to humans, to the calls of many species of cicadas
Cicada
A cicada is an insect of the order Hemiptera, suborder Auchenorrhyncha , in the superfamily Cicadoidea, with large eyes wide apart on the head and usually transparent, well-veined wings. There are about 2,500 species of cicada around the world, and many of them remain unclassified...
that can be heard for hundreds of metres at least. In season they produce the most characteristic and ubiquitous noise of the bush.
Classification
There has been a fair bit of debate and uncertainty as to whether the Auchenorrhyncha is a monophyletic group or not; some authors, believing it was not, split it into two suborders, the Clypeorrhyncha (= CicadomorphaCicadomorpha
The Cicadomorpha is the infraorder of the Hemiptera which contains the cicadas, leafhoppers, treehoppers, and spittlebugs. There are approximately 35000 described species worldwide...
) and the Archaeorrhyncha (= Fulgoromorpha). In the last 10 years there has been evidence to support this interpretation, and the most recent research indicates that the Auchenorrhyncha are indeed a paraphyletic lineage.
A classification of the Auchenorrhyncha is as follows:
- Infraorder Cicadomorpha (Clypeorrhyncha, Clypeata)
- Superfamily Cercopoidea (spittlebugs, froghopperFroghopperThe froghoppers, or the superfamily Cercopoidea, are a group of Hemipteran insects, in the suborder Auchenorrhyncha. Traditionally, most of this superfamily was considered a single family, Cercopidae, but this family has been split into three separate families for many years now: the Aphrophoridae,...
s)- Aphrophoridae
- CercopidaeCercopidaeCercopidae are the largest family of Cercopoidea, a xylem-feeding insect group, commonly called froghoppers . They belong to the hemipteran suborder Auchenorrhyncha....
- Clastopteridae
- Epipygidae
- MachaerotidaeMachaerotidaeThe Machaerotidae comprise a small, distinct and interesting group of insects mainly inhabiting the Old World tropics. The adult often has a long, free and spine-like process originating at the scutellum and is thus superficially similar to the Membracidae...
- Superfamily Cicadoidea (cicadas)
- Cicadidae (Platypediidae, Plautillidae, Tettigadidae, Tibicinidae)
- TettigarctidaeTettigarctidaeThe family Tettigarctidae, also known as the hairy cicadas is a small relictual family of primitive cicadas, containing a single genus Tettigarcta with two extant species, one in southern Australia , and the other in Tasmania ....
(hairy cicadas)
- Superfamily Membracoidea (Cicadelloidea)
- Aetalionidae (Biturritiidae)
- Cicadellidae (Eurymelidae, Hylicidae, Ledridae, Ulopidae, leafhoppers)
- Melizoderidae
- Membracidae (Nicomiidae, treehoppers)
- Myerslopiidae (Cicadellidae, in part)
- Superfamily Cercopoidea (spittlebugs, froghopper
- Infraorder Fulgoromorpha (Archaeorrhyncha, planthoppers)
- Superfamily Fulgoroidea
- Acanaloniidae
- Achilidae
- Achilixiidae
- CixiidaeCixiidaeCixiidae is a family of fulgoroid insects, one of many families commonly known as planthoppers, distributed worldwide and comprising more than 2,000 species from over 150 genera...
- DelphacidaeDelphacidaeDelphacidae is a family of planthoppers containing about 2000 species, distributed worldwide. Delphacids are separated from other "hoppers" by the prominent spur on the tibia of the hindleg. All species are phytophagous, many occurring on various grasses, and some are important vectors for cereal...
- DerbidaeDerbidaeDerbidae is a family of bugs in the suborder Auchenorrhyncha. The nymphs of some species nymph feed on fungi while adults live by sucking sap. Many adults are recognizable by their habit of holding up their wings. The short apical segment of the rostrum identifies the family....
- DictyopharidaeDictyopharidaeDictyopharidae is a family of bugs in the suborder Auchenorrhyncha belonging to the infraorder Fulgoromorpha. The family comprises nearly 760 species in more than 150 genera.-Classification:...
- EurybrachyidaeEurybrachyidaeThe Eurybrachyidae is a small family of planthoppers found in Asia, Australia and Africa; there are over 50 species described in some 20 genera. The frons of the head is characteristic in being broader than it is long...
- FlatidaeFlatidaeFlatidae are a family of Fulgoroid plant-hoppers. They are cosmopolitan in distribution and are distinguished from others in the superfamily by a combination of characters...
- Fulgoridae (lanternflies)
- Gengidae
- Hypochthonellidae
- IssidaeIssidaeIssidae is a family of 'planthoppers' described by Spinola in 1839, belonging to the ordo Hemiptera, subordo Auchenorrhyncha infraordo Fulgoromorpha....
- Kinnaridae
- Lophopidae
- Meenoplidae
- Nogodinidae
- RicaniidaeRicaniidaeThe family Ricaniidae is a group of hemipteran insects, containing over 40 genera and 400 species world-wide. Thus, they are one of the smaller families in the planthopper superfamily...
- Tettigometridae
- Tropiduchidae
- Superfamily Fulgoroidea