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Keeled Treehoppers & Wasp Parasites
Antianthe expansa
16.7145, -92.6105
Field Notes
Description:
These 3 brownish-green Treehopper females were busy scrapping the top layer off of a stem to lay their eggs. Amazingly, there was a little army of parasitic wasps all around them waiting to parasitize the eggs! The poor leaf-hoppers couldn't do anything about them and must have known they were there. They were also feeding and egg-laying on a Nightshade (Solanaceae). I rarely see anything on a nightshade plant. First instar nymphs and some older instar nymphs were also nearby (last 2 pictures). Family Membracidae, Subfamily Smiliinae.
Habitat:
Forested area with houses on the outskirts of San Cristobal de Las Casas, 2,200 meters.
Notes:
The specimens of Antianthe in this link from Nicaragua, were also feeding on Nightshade: http://www.americaninsects.net/h/antianthe-sp.html.
See a more recent spotting of this species in Chiapas:
http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/2025406002/fullscreen.
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