Corythucha ciliata

Corythucha ciliata, the sycamore lace bug, is a species of lace bug in the family Tingidae that is associated with sycamore trees.

Corythucha ciliata
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hemiptera
Family: Tingidae
Genus: Corythucha
Species:
C. ciliata
Binomial name
Corythucha ciliata
(Say, 1832)[1]
Synonyms
  • Tingis ciliata Say, 1832
Bottom (ventral) view

It originates in the New World, but has been introduced and has spread in Europe. It is a small, whitish insect and feeds on the underside of the leaves, sucking sap.

There are reports in Europe of C. cilata landing on people and biting them. Reports from Italy,[2] France[3] and Romania[4] indicate that some people experience adverse reactions, e.g., dermatosis.

Description

The adult sycamore lace bug is milky white in colour and between 3.2 and 3.7 mm (0.13 and 0.15 in) in length. It is similar in appearance to the cotton lace bug (Corythucha gossypii) and the Florida oak lace bug (Corythucha floridana), but lacks the brown crescent-shaped band on the carina (ridge on the body-wall) of the former and is larger than the latter. The only brown colour is a small spot on the protuberance on each elytron (wing-case).[5] The nymphs are oval in shape, dorso-ventrally flattened, black and prickly.[6] This lace bug can most easily be distinguished from other species by its presence on sycamore.[5]

Distribution and hosts

C. ciliata is native to North America and is found where its host trees grow. The main host is the American sycamore (Platanus occidentalis) but it is sometimes found on other species of Platanus, and it has been recorded on Broussonetia papyrifera, Carya ovata, Chamaedaphne sp., Fraxinus sp., Quercus laurifolia and Liquidambar styraciflua.[5]

In Europe, C. ciliata was first observed in 1964 in Padova, Italy, and has since spread throughout Southern and Central Europe, infesting the European hybrid plane (Platanus × acerifolia).[7][6] Although it does not of itself kill trees, in Central Europe it is often found in association with two plant-pathogenic fungi which can kill trees, Apiognomonia veneta and Ceratocystis fimbriata, leading to the hypothesis that it may act as a vector for these fungi.[5]

Life cycle
Lateral view

After the adults have mated, the female lays eggs on the undersides of leaves of the host tree, usually near a fork in the veins. When the eggs hatch, the juveniles stay close together at first, only moving onto a new leaf at the fourth instar stage. They puncture the epidermis of the leaf with their mouth parts and suck sap. There are five instars, after which the nymphs undergo incomplete metamorphosis to become adults. During the summer in Oklahoma, the whole cycle takes about 44 days. In the warmer parts of the insect's range, there may be several generations each year.[5] The insects are restricted to the underside of the leaves where little black mounds of dried frass can be seen and the shed skins of the nymphs often adhere to the leaf. The upper surface of the leaf is speckled with white, near the veins at first, and the leaf becomes progressively paler or bronzed and may fall early. Overwintering generally takes place as adults in crevices or under flakes of bark, the insects being able to withstand temperatures down to at least −24 °C (−11 °F).[6]

References
  1. Say, Thomas (1832). Descriptions of New Species of Heteropterous Hemiptera of North America. New Harmony, Indiana. [Link is to an 1858 reprint.]
  2. DUTTO, M.; BERTERO, M. (2013). "Dermatosis caused by Corythuca ciliata (Say, 1932) (Heteroptera, Tingidae). Diagnostic and clinical aspects of an unrecognized pseudoparasitosis". Journal of Preventive Medicine and Hygiene. 54 (1): 57–59. ISSN 1121-2233. PMC 4718364. PMID 24397008.
  3. Izri, Arezki; Andriantsoanirina, Valérie; Chosidow, Olivier; Durand, Rémy (2015-08-01). "Dermatosis Caused by Blood-Sucking Corythucha Ciliata". JAMA Dermatology. 151 (8): 909–910. doi:10.1001/jamadermatol.2015.0577. ISSN 2168-6068. PMID 25970727.
  4. Ciceoi, Roxana; Radulovici, Adriana. "Facultative blood-sucking lace bugs, Corythucha sp., in Romania". researchgate.net. Retrieved 6 August 2020.
  5. Halbert, Susan E. "Sycamore lace bug". Featured Creatures. IFAS. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
  6. Malumphy, Chris; Reid, Sharon; Eyre, Dominic (1 October 2006). "Platanus lace bug: Corythucha ciliata" (PDF). Central Science Laboratory. Retrieved 17 July 2017.
  7. Pralavorio, d'Aguilar R.; Rabasse J.M.; Mouton R. 1977. Introduction en France du tigre du platane: Corythucha ciliata (Say) (Het. Tingidae). Bulletin de la Société Entomologique de France 82: 1-6.
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