''Scaralina cristata'' is a species of

planthopper A planthopper is any insect in the infraorder Fulgoromorpha, in the suborder Auchenorrhyncha, a group exceeding 12,500 described species worldwide. The name comes from their remarkable resemblance to leaves and other plants of their environment ...

in the family

Fulgoridae The family Fulgoridae is a large group of hemipteran insects, especially abundant and diverse in the tropics, containing over 125 genera worldwide. They are mostly of moderate to large size, many with a superficial resemblance to Lepidoptera due t ...

. It is found from

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

in the United States south to the

Sierra Madre Occidental The Sierra Madre Occidental is a major mountain range system of the North American Cordillera, that runs northwest–southeast through northwestern and western Mexico, and along the Gulf of California. The Sierra Madre is part of the American C ...

in Mexico. It is one of four species (the others being ''

Scaralina aethrinsula ''Scaralina aethrinsula'' is a species of planthopper in the family Fulgoridae. It is found from Idaho in the United States south to the Sierra Madre Occidental in Mexico.Yanega, D., Goemans, G., Van Dam M., Gómez-Marco, F., Hoddle, M. (2024) De ...

'', ''

Scaralina marmorata ''Scaralina marmorata'' is a species of planthopper in the family Fulgoridae, found throughout the southeastern United States. It is one of four species (the others being '' Scaralina aethrinsula'', '' Scaralina cristata'', and '' Scaralina metca ...

'', and '' Scaralina metcalfi'') that were, for several decades, erroneously grouped together under a single name, ''Alphina glauca''; this name is now treated as a synonym of ''S. marmorata''.

Biology

''Scaralina cristata'' typically occurs at higher elevations, above 1000 meters, and is associated with oaks ( ''Quercus'' spp.). It has been reared on ''

Quercus arizonica ''Quercus arizonica'', the Arizona white oak, is a North American tree species in the beech family. It is found in Arizona, New Mexico, western Texas, Sonora, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Sinaloa, and Durango. Description The Arizona white oak is o ...

'', but this may not be its preferred host species. Adults are readily and commonly attracted to

blacklight A blacklight, also called a UV-A light, Wood's lamp, or ultraviolet light, is a lamp that emits long-wave ( UV-A) ultraviolet light and very little visible light. One type of lamp has a violet filter material, either on the bulb or in a se ...

Distribution

''Scaralina cristata'' is most often found in the

Madrean Sky Islands The Madrean Sky Islands are enclaves of Madrean pine–oak woodlands, found at higher elevations in a complex of small mountain ranges in southern and southeastern Arizona, southwestern New Mexico, and northwestern Mexico. The sky islands are su ...

down into

Sonora Sonora (), officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora (), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Administrative divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is divided into Municipalities of Sonora, 72 ...

, but also with populations of putative conspecifics extending east of the Continental Divide into

New Mexico New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also ...

, and south as far as the state of

Durango Durango, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Durango, is one of the 31 states which make up the Political divisions of Mexico, 32 Federal Entities of Mexico, situated in the northwest portion of the country. With a population of 1,832,650 ...

. In Arizona, its range overlaps the ranges of ''

'' and '' Scaralina metcalfi'', and all three species can be found together.

References

Insects described in 2024 Insects of North America Insects of Central America Poiocerinae {{Fulgoridae-stub