philaenus spumarius - insects belonging to the order Homoptera, family Cercopidae.Adults have an elongated body yellowish-gray-brown color.They are small in size, about 8 mm.Their front wings with a blurred spotty pattern folded gable sides.The hind legs are adapted for jumping.
All members of this family, and slobbery spittlebug including have proboscis, which are located within the acute long flexible bristles.Proboscis - a semblance of lips and bristles - similar jaws.The movement of the bristles in the proboscis is free, but they do not bend.Therefore, insects easily pierce the skin and suck plant juice, eating this way.Not a nibble or bite, they can not.
summer on grass can be seen white lumps like foam or saliva.If you push a ball, inside you can see a small creature greenish color.This larva philaenus spumarius and foam - her house, which she had built their own feet.Proboscis sticking to the blade of grass, she sucked the juice, and then released him, adding a little air, and very quickly worked legs whipped this liquid turned foamy cap.It rests on the grass due to the fact that the larva has added some foam viscous substance.Perhaps this hat - not a very reliable protection against enemies, but it does not allow larvae to dry in the sun, also reduces the effect of chemicals when spraying is conducted.
such protection does not need adult spittlebug slobbery.Photo shows it well.Protection of the body is not as delicate as the larva, and shelter from the sun, it may well be in the grass.But when the danger quickly runs away or pretending to be dead.
larvae feed on shoots and the underside of leaves, causing the leaves shrink, warp, and the ovaries do not develop.Slobbering spittlebug prefers to settle on a strawberry, strawberry, Lavandula, grapes, early cabbage, carrots, etc. With a high yield of these pest crop falls, so it has to fight.
larval stage lasts 30 to 50 days.Introduced dribbling spittlebug flies to various plants feeding until the autumn.The female lays eggs in groups (about 40) cuts the shoots in damp shady places.In the spring regrowth of plants with insects hatch.For the year is the development of only one generation.
Preventive measures - the best protection against such pests as slobbery spittlebug.To do this, you must clean the autumn crop residues.Planting should not be thickened, not to create high humidity, as required spittlebug.
If pest numerous, the landing can be treated with infusion of garlic, tobacco dust or soap.With a large number of insects would have to use an appropriate insecticide.During flowering, you can use BI-58 and post-harvest - karbofosom.
And finally an interesting fact.Adult dribbling spittlebug able to jump to a height of 0.8 m. If you make a proportion of the "size - the height of the jump," A man jumped to a height of 200 m. Impressive, is not it?
