Leafhopper paradise: The Cicadellidae of farm and field in the Granite State (New Hampshire) (Hemiptera: Auchenorrhyncha)

Nearly 600 species of leafhoppers are now known from New Hampshire, over half the total species known from Canada. This diversity has been documented through Phil Lowry’s early study of the state fauna, several projects targeting the insect diversity of unique biogeographic areas in the state, and a recent Hatch project focused on determination of the leafhopper fauna of managed, organic, and neglected farms and orchards in the state. In studying the fauna of farms several sampling techniques were used: pan traps (bright yellow, muted yellow, red, blue), sticky traps (bright yellow, greenish-yellow, white), and sweeping in crop areas and the boundary areas. Bright yellow pan and sticky traps were usually the most productive for species and individuals, with greenish-yellow and bright yellow sticky traps being particularly attractive to microleafhoppers. A few species such as Euscelis sordida preferred blue pan traps, or preferred red and blue but not yellow pan traps (Aphrodes costatus). Sweeping was least productive in terms of total number of individuals, but produced as many species in comparison with combined pan traps or sticky traps, and several grass-feeding species were most effectively sampled by sweeping. Depending on the leafhopper species targeted due to disease transmission or feeding damage, sweeping or use of specific differently colored or types of traps may be more efficient than others for monitoring of populations.