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ISSN: 1989-6581
van der Heyden & Gamboa Hidalgo (2014)
ARQUIVOS ENTOMOLÓXICOS, 12: 81-84
81
NOTA / NOTE
First record of Leptoglossus gonagra (Fabricius, 1775)
(Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Coreidae: Coreinae: Anisoscelini) in
Costa Rica.
Torsten van der Heyden 1 & Ignacio Gamboa Hidalgo 2
1 Immenweide 83, D-22523 Hamburg, Germany. e-mail: tmvdh@web.de
2 150 metros al norte de la Escuela Alejandro Rodríguez, CR-10603 Vuelta de Jorco, Aserrí, Costa Rica.
e-mail: vi_ig13@hotmail.com
Abstract: The Leaf-footed Bug Leptoglossus gonagra (Fabricius, 1775) is reported as a new record for Costa Rica.
Additional information about the biology, the ecology and the distribution of this species is also given. This is the
eleventh part of a series of publications about different Heteroptera in Costa Rica.
Key words: Hemiptera, Heteroptera, Coreidae, Coreinae, Anisoscelini, Leptoglossus gonagra, first record, Costa Rica.
Resumen: Primera cita de Leptoglossus gonagra (Fabricius, 1775) (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Coreidae: Coreinae:
Anisoscelini) en Costa Rica. Se cita por primera vez a Leptoglossus gonagra (Fabricius, 1775) para Costa Rica. Se
incluye información adicional sobre la biología, la ecología y la distribución de esta especie. Esta es la undécima parte de
una serie de publicaciones sobre diferentes heterópteros en Costa Rica.
Palabras clave: Hemiptera, Heteroptera, Coreidae, Coreinae, Anisoscelini, Leptoglossus gonagra, primera cita, Costa
Rica.
Recibido: 30 de julio de 2014 Publicado on-line: 19 de agosto de 2014
Aceptado: 11 de agosto de 2014
Introduction
The genus Leptoglossus Guérin-Méneville, 1831, which belongs to the family Coreidae, subfamily
Coreinae, is one of the most diverse and complex taxa of the tribe Anisoscelini in the Western
Hemisphere. It consists of sixty-one species and one subspecies of large bugs (Brailovsky, 2014),
commonly known as Leaf-footed Bugs because of the leaf-like dilations on the hind tibiae (Brailovsky &
Barrera, 2004; Fent & Kment, 2011). The genus is cosmopolitan, mainly widely distributed in the
Nearctic and the Neotropical region (Brailovsky & Barrera, 2004; Fent & Kment, 2011; Brailovsky, 2014).
Its species are phytophagous and some of them are considered as a pest because they feed on
cultivated plants.
Until 1998, four species of Leptoglossus were reported from Costa Rica, when Brailovsky &
Barrera (1998) added six noteworthy records and two new species to the list. Within the last ten years,
Leptoglossus arenalensis Brailovsky & Barrera, 2004 (Brailovsky & Barrera, 2004) and Leptoglossus
franckei Brailovsky, 2014 (Brailovsky, 2014) were added to the list of Leptoglossus species known from
Costa Rica. So far, fourteen species of Leptoglossus have been listed to be known from Costa Rica,
among them Leptoglossus zonatus (Dallas, 1852) (van der Heyden & Gamboa, 2012). To our knowledge,
Leptoglossus gonagra (Fabricius, 1775) has not been reported from Costa Rica, yet.
van der Heyden & Gamboa Hidalgo (2014): First record of Leptoglossus gonagra (Fabricius) (Hem.: Coreidae) in Costa Rica.
82
Distribution of L. gonagra (Fabricius, 1775)
Beside Leptoglossus occidentalis Heidemann, 1910, L. gonagra, commonly known as Passionvine
Bug or Citron Bug, is one of the two species of the genus Leptoglossus which occur outside the Western
Hemisphere (Brailovsky & Barrera, 2004; Fent & Kment, 2011; Brailovsky, 2014). Its distribution
extends through the United States of America, Puerto Rico, Cuba, Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, El
Salvador, Nicaragua, Venezuela, Ecuador, Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay and Argentina to Africa, Asia,
Australia and the Pacific Islands (Maes & Goellner-Scheiding, 1993; Packauskas, 2010; Fent & Kment,
2011; Brailovsky, 2014). It has not been reported from continental Europe (Taylor et al., 2001) yet, but
has reached the Canary Islands (Heiss & Báez, 1990; Aukema et al., 2006; Fent & Kment, 2011).
Ecology of L. gonagra (Fabricius, 1775)
L. gonagra is phytophagous and has been reported to feed on a wide range of plants, belonging to
the families Anacardiaceae, Asteraceae, Bixaceae, Capparidaceae, Cucurbitaceae (including Cucurbita
sp. and Cucumis sp.), Euphorbiaceae, Malvaceae, Myrtaceae, Passifloraceae (including various species of
cultivated Passiflora), Poaceae (including Zea mays), Punicaceae (including Punica sp.), Rutaceae
(including Citrus sp.), Solanaceae (including Nicotiana sp. and Solanum sp.), Typhaceae and Vitaceae
(including Vitis sp.) (Maes & Goellner-Scheiding, 1993; Boiça Jr. & Caetano, 1999; Joy & Sherin, 2013).
As other species of the genus, L. gonagra is considered as a pest (Boiça Jr. & Caetano, 1999; Joy &
Sherin, 2013).
Ecology of L. gonagra (Fabricius, 1775) in Costa Rica
Recently, the co-author was able to find and photograph eggs, nymphs and adults of L. gonagra in
Costa Rica. The site of the findings is located in Vuelta de Jorco, county of Aserrí in the province of
Fig. 1.- Leptoglossus gonagra (Fabricius, 1775). Eggs, Vuelta de
Jorco, Aserrí, San José, Costa Rica, 24.7.2014.
Fig. 2.- Leptoglossus gonagra (Fabricius, 1775). Nymphs of
different development stages, Vuelta de Jorco, Aserrí, San José,
Costa Rica, 25.7.2014.
1
2
ARQUIVOS ENTOMOLÓXICOS, 12: 81-84
83
San José, about 1100 m above
sea level. The specimens were
found at a plantation of Z. mays,
which was mixed with other
cultivated plants as Cucurbita
argyrosperma, the Japanese pie
pumpkin or pipian, in Costa Rica
known as “ayote” and Coriandrum
sativum (Apiaceae), in Costa Rica
known as “culantro”.
On 24.7.2014, the co-
author found eggs (Fig. 1) of L.
gonagra on leaves of C.
argyrosperma and of Bidens
pilosa (Asteraceae), in Costa Rica
known as “mozote”. The eggs
were found in groups of 25 to
40, the bigger groups were found
on C. argyrosperma.
One day later (25.7.
2014), the co-author was able to
photograph nymphs of different
development stages (Fig. 2) at
the same site. The nymphs were
only found on leaves of C.
argyrosperma, where they could
be seen in aggregations of about
thirty specimens, sometimes
with one or two adults nearby.
On the same day and at
the same site the co-author
photographed adults of L.
gonagra (Figs. 3, 4), which were
seen as single individuals or, in
most cases, associated with
groups of nymphs. The adults
were found on Z. mays, C.
argyrosperma and B. pilosa.
The specimens of L. gonagra were found during the rainy season, although the amount of rainfall
in the Central Valley of Costa Rica has been -so far- very low this year.
Taking into account that L. gonagra has been reported from other Central American countries,
the presence of this species in Costa Rica had to be expected.
References
Aukema, B.; Duffels, J.P. & Báez, M. 2006. A Checklist of the Heteroptera of the Canary Islands
(Insecta). In: Rabitsch, W. (ed.). Hug the Bug. For love of true bugs. Festschrift zum 70. Geburtstag
von Ernst Heiss. Denisia 19: 755-774.
Fig. 3.- Leptoglossus gonagra (Fabricius, 1775). Adult, lateral view, Vuelta de
Jorco, Aserrí, San José, Costa Rica, 25.7.2014.
Fig. 4.- Leptoglossus gonagra (Fabricius, 1775). Adult, dorsal view, Vuelta de
Jorco, Aserrí, San José, Costa Rica, 25.7.2014. (All photographs: Ignacio Gamboa
Hidalgo).
3
4
van der Heyden & Gamboa Hidalgo (2014): First record of Leptoglossus gonagra (Fabricius) (Hem.: Coreidae) in Costa Rica.
84
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