Skip to main content
ARS Home » Northeast Area » Beltsville, Maryland (BARC) » Beltsville Agricultural Research Center » Systematic Entomology Laboratory » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #402179
Research Project: Systematics of Acari and Hemiptera: Plant Pests, Predators, and Disease Vectors

Location: Systematic Entomology Laboratory

Title: First United States record and host for the plant bug Schaffnerocoris fuscotibialis Henry and Menard (Miridae: Bryocorinae: Eccritotarsini)

Author
item MENARD, KATRINA - University Of Oklahoma
item Henry, Thomas
item HEDLUND, TYLER - Illinois Natural History Survey
item QUINTANILLA, JUSTIN - University Of Texas

Submitted to: Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington
Publication Type: Research Notes
Publication Acceptance Date: 3/28/2023
Publication Date: 11/16/2023
Citation: Menard, K., Henry, T.J., Hedlund, T., Quintanilla, J. 2023. First United States record and host for the plant bug Schaffnerocoris fuscotibialis Henry and Menard (Miridae: Bryocorinae: Eccritotarsini). Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington. 125 (1):201-202. https://doi.org/10.4289/0013-8797.125.1.201.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.4289/0013-8797.125.1.201

Interpretive Summary: Plant bugs represent the largest family of true bugs and includes numerous agriculturally important species. Many, such as lygus bugs, are serious pests of crops and ornamental plantings, causing enormous economic losses in the United States annually. This note documents the recent discovery of a plant bug in southern Texas not previously known from the United States, based initially on a photo posted online by a citizen scientist. After contacting the photographer, the authors were able verify the preliminary identification based on a follow-up collection of specimens, and discover the first known host, a species of agave, which exhibited severe foliar damage. This paper will be of interest to a wide range of researchers working on pests of ornamental agaves and related plants in the southwestern United States.

Technical Abstract: In this note, we provide the first United States record for the plant bug Schaffnerocoris fuscotibialis Henry and Menard (Hemiptera: Miridae) from South Texas, previously known only from Nuevo Leon, Mexico. This bug was first tentatively identified based on online photos provided by a citizen scientifist. A follow-up collection of specimens in Starr County, Texas, allowed us to confirm the identity of this plant bug and determine the first known host, Agave univittata Haw. (Asparagaceae: Agavoideae).