Saturday Morning With Jack Tame

Passionvine Hoppers came up in conversation a week or so ago: a nuisance for gardeners, especially in the warmer north (but more and more a pain-in-the-South as well!).  I also remember that Aucklanders often called them lacy-winged moths. Shows you that entomological knowledge has always been slow to sink in up there in the North Island.   They are certainly not moths, these critters belong to a totally different insect order: the Homoptera, or sap-sucking bugs. Yes, these are some of the insects you can legitimately call “bugs” in entomological parlance.   LIFE CYCLE:   Eggs hatch in October – the timing relates to warmth in spring.   The tiny fluffy bums (“nymphs”) suck sap from a wide variety of host plants and slowly grow bigger and bigger. They also become nimbler and can hop greater distances as they grow larger in spring.   Late in spring (December onwards) the Fluffy Bums will moult their last moult and turn into a winged adult Passionvine Hopper.    One nymph