Leptoglossus phyllopus or eastern leaf-footed bug is a species of leaf-footed bugs in the same genus as the western conifer seed bug (L. occidentalis). The eastern leaf-footed bug is found throughout the southern United States, from Florida to California, through Mexico, and as far south as Costa Rica.
These bugs are a common garden insect which may damage a wide variety of crops including cotton, peaches and tomatoes, and seeds such as beans, black-eyed peas and sorghum.https://texasinsects.tamu.edu/leaffooted-bug/ Leaffooted Bug, Field Guide to Common Texas Insects Like other bugs L. phyllopus suck juices from plants by puncturing them with their sucking mouth parts, making them resistant to ingested pesticides. A toxin is injected into the plant when piercing its skin, causing discoloration and hard spots on fruits. The adult bugs are highly resistant to pesticides; however, they are vulnerable in their bright orange nymph stage. Trap crops can be used to lure them away from desired plants and to encourage predator populations, and in small garden plots handpicking, the use of trap crops, and bug traps baited with methyl (E, Z)-2,4-decadienoate can be effective controls.
Acetosyringone is produced by the male leaffooted bug and used in its communication system.Acetosyringone on www.pherobase.com, the pheromones data baseMale specific natural products in the bug, Leptoglossus phyllopus: Chemistry and possible function. J.R. Aldrich, M.S. Blum, S.S. Duffey and H.M. Fales, Journal of Insect Physiology, Volume 22, Issue 9, 1976, Pages 1201-1206 Species-specific natural products of adult male leaf-footed bugs (Hemiptera: Heteroptera). J. R. Aldrich, M. S. Blum and H. M. Fales, Journal of Chemical Ecology, Volume 5, Number 1, 53-62, Leptoglossus phyllopus emits a foul odor when it is handled
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External links
leaffooted bug on the UF / IFAS Featured Creatures Web site Stink Bugs and Leaffooted Bugs Are Important Fruit, Nut, Seed and Vegetable Pests1 again from UF / IFAS