| Ledra aurita | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hemiptera |
| Suborder: | Auchenorrhyncha |
| Family: | Cicadellidae |
| Subfamily: | Ledrinae |
| Tribe: | Ledrini |
| Genus: | Ledra |
| Species: | L. aurita |
| Binomial name | |
| Ledra aurita (Linnaeus 1758) | |
Ledra aurita or the eared leafhopper is a species of bug in the family Cicadellidae. It is the only species of the subfamily Ledrinae that lives in Europe, including the British Isles. [1]
Ledra aurita lives in the deciduous forests of Europe and Asia, where it is mostly found in the treetops. [2] Though common in some areas, it is hard to spot due to its bark-like camouflage. The species can be found on lichen-covered trees, especially oaks. [1]
The species is large and grey with ear-like projections on the pronotum. They are 13–18 millimetres (0.51–0.71 in) long. [1]
The eared leafhopper is adapted to life on tree bark. Both the larvae and the adult animals are very well camouflaged and can be hard to notice against a barky background. They feed on sap from the leaves and branches of deciduous trees and bushes with their specially built, tree-piercing mouthparts. The species is polyphagous, which means that it is not very particular about its food. Although it prefers oaks, it also eats from a large number of other woody plants such as birch or poplar and occasionally linden, beech, apple, maple, alder and hazel trees. Adults like to fly towards light at night and so can sometimes be found near human habitation.
An oak is a hardwood tree or shrub in the genus Quercus of the beech family. They have spirally arranged leaves, often with lobed edges, and a nut called an acorn, borne within a cup. The genus is widely distributed in the Northern Hemisphere; it includes some 500 species, both deciduous and evergreen. Fossil oaks date back to the Middle Eocene. Molecular phylogeny shows that the genus is divided into Old World and New World clades, but many oak species hybridise freely, making the genus's history difficult to resolve.
Quercus rubra, the northern red oak, is an oak tree in the red oak group. It is a native of North America, in the eastern and central United States and southeast and south-central Canada. It has been introduced to small areas in Western Europe, where it can frequently be seen cultivated in gardens and parks. It prefers good soil that is slightly acidic. Often simply called red oak, northern red oak is so named to distinguish it from southern red oak (Q. falcata), also known as the Spanish oak. Northern red oak is sometimes called champion oak.
Quercus palustris, also called pin oak, swamp oak, or Spanish oak, is a tree in the red oak section of the genus Quercus. Pin oak is one of the most commonly used landscaping oaks in its native range due to its ease of transplant, relatively fast growth, and pollution tolerance.
The Eurasian nuthatch or wood nuthatch is a small passerine bird found throughout the Palearctic and in Europe. Like other nuthatches, it is a short-tailed bird with a long bill, blue-gray upperparts and a black eye-stripe. It is a vocal bird with a repeated loud dwip call. There are more than 20 subspecies in three main groups; birds in the west of the range have orange-buff underparts and a white throat, those in Russia have whitish underparts, and those in the east have a similar appearance to European birds, but lack the white throat.
Quercus cerris, the Turkey oak or Austrian oak, is an oak native to south-eastern Europe and Asia Minor. It is the type species of Quercus sect. Cerris, a section of the genus characterised by shoot buds surrounded by soft bristles, bristle-tipped leaf lobes, and acorns that usually mature in 18 months.
The scarlet tanager is a medium-sized American songbird. Until recently, it was placed in the tanager family (Thraupidae), but it and other members of its genus are now classified as belonging to the cardinal family (Cardinalidae). The species' plumage and vocalizations are similar to other members of the cardinal family, although the Piranga species lacks the thick conical bill that many cardinals possess. The species resides in thick deciduous woodlands and suburbs.
Salix caprea, known as goat willow, pussy willow or great sallow, is a common species of willow native to Europe and western and central Asia.
Quercus pubescens, commonly known as the downy oak, pubescent oak or Italian oak, is a species of white oak native to southern Europe and southwest Asia. It is found from northern Spain (Pyrenees) and France in the West to Turkey and the Caucasus in the East.
Apatura iris, the purple emperor, is a Palearctic butterfly of the family Nymphalidae.
The forest bug or red-legged shieldbug is a species of shield bug in the family Pentatomidae, commonly found in most of Europe. It inhabits forests, woodlands, orchards, and gardens.
Fuchsia excorticata, commonly known as tree fuchsia, New Zealand fuchsia and by its Māori name kōtukutuku, is a New Zealand native tree belonging to the family Onagraceae. It is commonly found throughout New Zealand and as far south as the Auckland Islands. It grows from sea level up to about 1,000 m (3,300 ft), particularly alongside creeks and rivers. It is easily recognised in its native environment by the characteristic appearance of its bark, which peels spontaneously, hanging in red papery strips to show a pale bark underneath. Its scientific name, excorticata, reflects this distinctive property.
The ant beetle, also known as the European red-bellied clerid, is a medium size insect, rather soft-bodied, with strong mandibles that can tear between the hard sclerotized integument of bark beetles. Larvae and adults are common predators of bark beetles in Europe.
The northern birch mouse is a small rodent about 5 to 8 cm long, weighing 5 to 13 g. It lives in northern Europe and Asia in forest and marsh zones.
The greater mouse-eared bat is a European species of bat in the family Vespertilionidae.
The south-eastern long-eared bat or Corben's long-eared bat, is a species of bat found in Australia. It occurs in the woodlands of the Murray Darling Basin and adjacent areas.
The large-eared tenrec is a species of mammal in the family Tenrecidae. It is the only species in the monotypic genus Geogale, and the only member of the subfamily Geogalinae. It is endemic to Madagascar where its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests and shrubland. It is threatened by habitat loss, but to a lesser extent than was previously thought and is listed by the IUCN as being of "Least Concern".
Biston strataria, the oak beauty, is a moth of the family Geometridae. It is native to Europe, the Balkan countries and the Black Sea region as far as Asia Minor and the Caucasus. The species was first described by Johann Siegfried Hufnagel in 1767. B. strataria is found in a variety of habitats, but is mostly found in woodlands where it rests on the bark of trees, camouflaged by its mottled black and grey wings. The male has feather-like antennae while those of the female are more thread-like. The moth has a wingspan of 40 to 56 mm.
Penthimia nigra is a species of leafhoppers belonging to the family Cicadellidae subfamily Deltocephalinae.
Orientus ishidae, common name Japanese leafhopper or Mosaic leafhopper, is a species of leafhoppers belonging to the family Cicadellidae and subfamily Deltocephalinae.
Ledra is the type genus of leafhoppers in the subfamily Ledrinae and the tribe Ledrini. Ledra aurita can be found in Europe but most species occur in Asia.
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