Fig leaf sucker

Fig leaf sucker
Fig leaf sucker ( Homotoma ficus )
Systematics
Subclass : Flying insects (Pterygota) Order : Schnabelkerfe (Hemiptera) Subordination : Plant lice (Sternorrhyncha) Family : Homotomidae Genre : Homotoma Type : Fig leaf sucker
Scientific name
Homotoma ficus
( Linnaeus , 1758)

The fig leaf sucker ( Homotoma ficus ) is a species of insect belonging to the genus Homotoma and to the family of the Homotomidae. It was first described in 1758 by Carl von Linné . There are no subspecies listed in the catalog of life.

The fig leaf sucker is two to three millimeters in size as a finished insect. The nymphs appear from April on the underside of fig leaves, mostly directly on the central rib or on the larger ribs of the leaf . After four to six weeks, the nymphs have developed into finished insects ( adults ). With low to moderate infestation, there is hardly any damage to the fig tree, with heavy infestation a sticky coating develops on the upper side of the leaf, which is often colonized by sooty fungi, which inhibits photosynthesis of the leaf. In addition, if the infestation is severe, the fruits are infested. Repeatedly spraying the tree with water, which should be done with a hose from below if possible, reduces the infestation. Systemic insecticides help if the infestation is more severe . No more than one generation develops per year, so the infestation stops by itself from June. The hibernation occurs through light yellow eggs that are deposited in the tree.

The fig leaf sucker is widespread in the countries around the Mediterranean as well as in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Great Britain, Russia, Ukraine, the Caucasus, Iran and the USA. The fig leaf sucker has been detected in Austria and Switzerland since the 1980s, and in northern France and southwest Germany since 2014 .

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Christoph Seiler: figs from one's own garden , Stuttgart 2016, pages 51–52.
2. ↑ Homotoma ficus at bladmineerders.nl.
3. ↑ Homotoma ficus at hemiptera-databases.org.
4. ↑ Christoph Seiler: figs from one's own garden , Stuttgart 2016, pages 51–52.