First report of the invasive leafhopper Balclutha rubrostriata in Oklahoma

Balclutha rubrostriata (Melichar) (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae), native to southeastern Asia, is an invasive leafhopper in the United States.  Initially identified in the U.S. in 2008 as the most abundant species in an arthropod survey in Bexar County, Texas, it has since spread rapidly throughout Texas and southeastern Louisiana. The red-streaked leafhopper belongs to a genus that is known to contain virus and phytoplasma vectors, and the species has been shown to acquire sugarcane white leaf phytoplasma. In the U.S., B. rubrostriata is collected primarily from the invasive grass Bothriochloa ischaemum (L.), King Ranch Bluestem, which poses an ecological threat to native Oklahoma grasslands.  To determine the status of this leafhopper within Oklahoma, ten locations in central Texas and south and central Oklahoma were sampled with a 12-inch sweep net. Thirty sweeps were taken from mixed grasses including primarily King Ranch Bluestem and Bermudagrass and frozen at -20˚C. Leafhoppers were then placed in 95% EtOH and examined using a Wild BX5 stereomicroscope. Samples from Payne and McClain counties in Oklahoma contained leafhoppers identified as B. rubrostriata using morphological characteristics of the genitalia. Genomic DNA was then extracted from the collected B. rubrostriata individuals and a panel of field-collected leafhopper species. PCR amplification using designed B. rubrostriata-specific primers amplified a 570 bp region of the mtCOI gene of B. rubrostriata individuals only. The amplicons were then sequenced and confirmed the morphological identifications. Continued spread of the red-streaked leafhopper facilitated by the invasive King Ranch Bluestem could threaten native species complexes in grassland ecosystems.