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Small green rose bug

by Corrie
(Stoke poges, bucks, UK)

bug with biro tip

bug with biro tip

This little guy's from England...
• Bright yellowy green
• About 5-6 mm long and 2mm wide
• Tail seems to stretch in and out
• Tiny black dots for eyes on the side of it's head
• Smooth, soft looking body
• minute antenna about 1mm long and very fine
• no wings
• was found crawling slowly around the inside of a rose
THANK YOU FOR ANY HELP! :)

Comments for
Small green rose bug

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Spit
by: Moni

Here in the US we do have another hopper that we call the Spittlebug. The adult lays its eggs in a foam spit blob on the stems of alfalfa, clover and other plants. The egg hatches and the nymph lives inside the spittle feeding on the plant juices.
Corrie did not say the small green bug was in a "case" of spit so this is not the nymph of the Spittlebug...but is related.
Cuckoo Spit!
by: Anonymous

Over here in the UK, that little creature leaves white foam on plants, about the size of a thumbnail, which looks like someone threw some leftover dishwater out. We call it Cuckoo Spit but I've got no idea why they leave it :)
Small green hopper
by: Moni

Well, yes your uncle is right in that froghopper is another term that can be used for plant or leafhopper. Tho, it is not a beetle (those are order Coleoptera while hoppers are Homopteras)...beetles have hard shells and no nymph stage.
Not heard the terminology of "cuckoo spit". Aphids which are in the Homoptera order do leave "droppings" that are sticky and can be a mess on objects that sit under the plant with an aphid population.
Hope that helps.
Rose bug reply
by: Corrie

Hi, Thank you so much for your help! and it's also reasuring they're not too harmful to my roses! After posting my photo I remembered my uncle's a biologist so I mailed him the same photo. He reckoned it is the nymph of a froghopper, the kind of beetle that leaves 'cuckoo spit' (At least that's what we call it in the UK!) Let me know if you think that rings true. Thanks again for your help :)
Small green leafhopper
by: Moni

Corrie
Your green bug is either a leafhopper or a planthopper, order Homoptera. The photo is fabulous. And your description is great. This insect is in the nymph stage so it is hard to ID exactly, as many of the leafhoppers are small and greenish at that stage. The rose leafhopper has spots on the wings at an early stage, so I do not think that is what it is.
Leafhoppers and planthoppers suck juices from the plant they are feeding on and can cause distortion of the plant part or browning and yellowing. If you only have a few, don't worry the birds or other beneficial critters will take care of them.
If you have a lot then you might need to use a blast of water from the hose or insecticidal soap to get rid of them.
If you see adults - those with wings that go to the end of the body, not half way like your green guy, then please send a photo, so I can help better ID.
Let me know if I can help futher.

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