Sharpshooters

Sharpshooters, are called Doggers, are are a distinct group of insects belonging to the leafhopper family. About 2.500 species are found in the U.S. and Canada. Adults are elongated and parallel-sided. They are about 3/8-1/2 inch long and only about 1/8 inch wide. Their head is elongated, forward-pointing and rounded in front. Many species are marked or patterned with bright colors.

Sharpshooters often sit upside down on the plants and when approached, they will run sideways around to the opposite side of the stem or leaf that they are feeding on.

The females deposit their eggs in plant tissue, and some species of sharpshooters have multiple generations each year. The adolescents look much like the adults, except for their small size and absence of wings. Before reaching the adult stage, they go through five immature stages.

Sharpshooters are pests, sucking juices from plants and feeding on all sorts of crops, ornamental plants, trees, and weeds. They often excrete a large amount of honeydew, which can cause a condition called sooty mold. Sooty mold is not a plant disease (though some species do transmit plant diseases), but a side effect of the black spores of certain fungi feeding on the honeydew excreted by the sharpshooters.

Some common species are the southern garden leafhopper, the potato leafhopper, the rose leafhopper and the apple leafhopper.