Lerp (biology)

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Red lerps (Austrochardia acaciae) on Acacia aneura, Central Australia Red lerps austrochardia acaciae.jpg
Red lerps ( Austrochardia acaciae ) on Acacia aneura, Central Australia

In biology, a lerp is a structure of crystallized honeydew produced by larvae of psyllid bugs as a protective cover. These animals are commonly referred to as lerp insects, of which there are over 300 species in Australia. [1]

Lerps are energy rich, consisting mostly of starch, with some proteins and fats. [1] They are eaten by flying foxes, possums and birds such as pardalotes and honeyeaters. [1]

The word is derived from the Wemba Wemba word lerep. [2] Lerps are traditionally eaten by Indigenous people, and can be stored as dry balls for future use. [3]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pardalote</span> Family of birds

Pardalotes or peep-wrens are a family, Pardalotidae, of very small, brightly coloured birds native to Australia, with short tails, strong legs, and stubby blunt beaks. This family is composed of four species in one genus, Pardalotus, and several subspecies. The name derives from a Greek word meaning "spotted". The family once contained several other species now split into the family Acanthizidae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Psyllid</span> Family of true bugs

Psyllidae, the jumping plant lice or psyllids, are a family of small plant-feeding insects that tend to be very host-specific, i.e. each plant-louse species only feeds on one plant species (monophagous) or feeds on a few closely related plants (oligophagous). Together with aphids, phylloxerans, scale insects and whiteflies, they form the group called Sternorrhyncha, which is considered to be the most "primitive" group within the true bugs (Hemiptera). They have traditionally been considered a single family, Psyllidae, but recent classifications divide the group into a total of seven families; the present restricted definition still includes more than 70 genera in the Psyllidae. Psyllid fossils have been found from the Early Permian before the flowering plants evolved. The explosive diversification of the flowering plants in the Cretaceous was paralleled by a massive diversification of associated insects, and many of the morphological and metabolic characters that the flowering plants exhibit may have evolved as defenses against herbivorous insects.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mopane</span> Genus of legumes

Colophospermum mopane, commonly called mopane, mopani, balsam tree, butterfly tree, or turpentine tree, is a tree in the legume family (Fabaceae), that grows in hot, dry, low-lying areas, 200 to 1,150 metres in elevation, in the far northern parts of Southern Africa. The tree only occurs in Africa and is the only species in genus Colophospermum. Its distinctive butterfly-shaped (bifoliate) leaf and thin seed pod make it easy to identify. In terms of human use it is, together with camel thorn and leadwood, one of the three regionally important firewood trees.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brown falcon</span> Species of bird

The brown falcon is a relatively large falcon native to Australia and New Guinea.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bell miner</span> Species of bird

The bell miner, commonly known as the bellbird, is a colonial honeyeater, endemic to southeastern Australia. The common name refers to their bell-like call. 'Miner' is an old alternative spelling of 'myna', and is shared with other members of the genus Manorina. The birds feed almost exclusively on the dome-like coverings, referred to as 'bell lerps', of certain psyllid bugs that feed on eucalyptus sap from the leaves. The psyllids make these bell lerps from their own honeydew secretions in order to protect themselves from predators and the environment.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Red-browed pardalote</span> Species of bird

The red-browed pardalote is a small brightly coloured insectivorous passerine, endemic to Australia. A gleaning specialist, they forage primarily in eucalypt trees . The Latin word rubricatus means 'red-ochred' which is descriptive of their orange-red eyebrow. Other common names include red-browed diamondbird, bellbird, cape red-browed, pale red-browed, fawn-eyed, fawn-eyebrowed and pallid or red-lored pardalote.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New Holland honeyeater</span> Species of bird

The New Holland honeyeater is a honeyeater species found throughout southern Australia. It was among the first birds to be scientifically described in Australia, and was initially named Certhia novaehollandiae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">White-plumed honeyeater</span> Species of bird

The white-plumed honeyeater is a small passerine bird endemic to Australia. White-plumed honeyeaters are common around water and are often seen in backyards and suburbs with vegetation cover.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">White-eared honeyeater</span> Species of bird

The white-eared honeyeater is a medium-sized honeyeater found in Australia. It is a member of the family Meliphagidae which has 190 recognised species with about half of them found in Australia. This makes them members of the most diverse family of birds in Australia. White-eared honeyeaters are easily identifiable by their olive-green body, black head and white ear-patch.

<i>Brachygastra mellifica</i> Species of wasp

Brachygastra mellifica, commonly known as the Mexican honey wasp, is a neotropical social wasp. It can be found in North America. B. mellifica is one of few wasp species that produces honey. It is also considered a delicacy in some cultures in Mexico. This wasp species is of use to humans because it can be used to control pest species and to pollinate avocados.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Purple-gaped honeyeater</span> Species of bird

The purple-gaped honeyeater is a species of bird in the family Meliphagidae. It is endemic to semi-arid southern Australia, where it inhabits mallee, tall heath and associated low eucalypt woodland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mangrove honeyeater</span> Species of bird

The mangrove honeyeater is a species of bird in the honeyeater family Meliphagidae. The species was once considered to be conspecific with the varied honeyeater, but it is now treated as a separate species. These two species form a genus with the singing honeyeater.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fuscous honeyeater</span> Species of bird

The fuscous honeyeater is a species of bird in the family Meliphagidae. It is endemic to eastern Australia, where it inhabits subtropical and tropical dry forests.

<i>Psylla pyri</i> Species of true bug

Psylla pyri, commonly known as the pear psylla or pear psyllid, is an insect in the family Psyllidae. Originating in Europe and Asia, it has spread to North America. It is a pest of pear trees, sucking the sap, damaging the foliage, flowers and fruit and diminishing the crop.

<i>Solanum jamesii</i> Species of plant

Solanum jamesii is a species of nightshade. Its range includes the southern United States. All parts of the plant, and especially the fruit, are toxic, containing solanine when it matures. The tubers were/are eaten raw or cooked by several Native American tribes, but they require leaching and boiling in clay in order to be rendered edible. The tubers are small when compared to familiar varieties of S. tuberosum.

<i>Diaphorina citri</i> Species of true bug

Diaphorina citri, the Asian citrus psyllid, is a sap-sucking, hemipteran bug in the family Psyllidae. It is one of two confirmed vectors of citrus greening disease. It has a wide distribution in southern Asia and has spread to other citrus growing regions.

<i>Liberibacter</i> Species of bacterium

Liberibacter is a genus of Gram-negative bacteria in the Rhizobiaceae family. Detection of the liberibacteria is based on PCR amplification of their 16S rRNA gene with specific primers. Members of the genus are plant pathogens mostly transmitted by psyllids. The genus was originally spelled Liberobacter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Homotomidae</span> Family of true bugs

Homotomidae is a family of small phloem-feeding bugs in the superfamily Psylloidea, or jumping plantlice.

<i>Tamarixia radiata</i> Species of wasp

Tamarixia radiata, the Asian citrus cyllid parasitoid, is an hymenopteran wasp from the family Eulophidae which was discovered in the 1920s in the area of northwestern India (Punjab), now Pakistan. It is a parasitoid of the Asian citrus psyllid, an economically important pest of citrus crops around the world and a vector for Citrus greening disease.

<i>Cacopsylla pyrisuga</i> Species of jumping plant lice

Cacopsylla pyrisuga, or the large pear sucker, is a species of true bug in the family Psyllidae known as a pest of pear trees (Pyrus) in Central and North Europe.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Lerps - One of nature's sweet offerings". Land for Wildlife. 2019-08-07. Retrieved 2021-10-10.
  2. Australian Aboriginal Words in English. Melbourne: Oxford University Press. 2006 [1990]. p. 103. ISBN   9780195540734.
  3. Faast, Renate; Clarke, Philip A.; Taylor, Gary S.; Salagaras, Renée L.; Weinstein, Philip (2020-09-01). "Indigenous Use of Lerps in Australia: So Much More Than a Sweet Treat". Journal of Ethnobiology. 40 (3): 328–347. doi:10.2993/0278-0771-40.3.328. ISSN   0278-0771.