The most polyphagous insect herbivore? Host plant associations of the Meadow spittlebug, Philaenus spumarius (L.)

A comprehensive list of all known host plant species utilised by the Meadow Spittlebug (Philaenus spumarius (L.)) is presented, compiled from published and unpublished sources. P. spumarius feeds on 1311 host plants in 631 genera and 117 families. This appears, by a large margin, to be the greatest...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:PloS one 2023-10, Vol.18 (10), p.e0291734-e0291734
Main Authors: Thompson, Vinton, Harkin, Claire, Stewart, Alan J. A
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Apiaceae
Art galleries & museums
Asteraceae
Beans
Biology and Life Sciences
Brassicaceae
Caprifoliaceae
Fabaceae
Ferns
Flowers & plants
Host plants
Host range
Insects
Lamiaceae
Legumes
Meadows
Medicine and Health Sciences
Mimosaceae
Pathogens
Philaenus spumarius
Plant bacterial diseases
Plant species
Poaceae
Properties
Rosaceae
Science
Science Policy
Species
Xylella fastidiosa
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Summary:A comprehensive list of all known host plant species utilised by the Meadow Spittlebug (Philaenus spumarius (L.)) is presented, compiled from published and unpublished sources. P. spumarius feeds on 1311 host plants in 631 genera and 117 families. This appears, by a large margin, to be the greatest number of host species exploited by any herbivorous insect. The Asteraceae (222 species) and Rosaceae (110) together account for 25% of all host species. The Fabaceae (76) and Poaceae (73), are nearly tied for third and fourth place and these four families, combined with the Lamiaceae (62), Apiaceae (50), Brassicaceae (43) and Caprifoliaceae (34), comprise about half of all host species. Hosts are concentrated among herbaceous dicots but range from ferns and grasses to shrubs and trees. Philaenus spumarius is an "extreme polyphage", which appears to have evolved from a monophage ancestor in the past 3.7 to 7.9 million years. It is also the primary European vector of the emerging plant pathogen Xylella fastidiosa. Its vast host range suggests that it has the potential to spread X. fastidiosa among multiple hosts in any environment in which both the spittlebug and bacterium are present. Fully 47.9% of all known hosts were recorded in the Xylella-inspired BRIGIT citizen science P. spumarius host survey, including 358 hosts new to the documentary record, 27.3% of the 1311 total. This is a strong demonstration of the power of organized amateur observers to contribute to scientific knowledge.
ISSN:1932-6203
1932-6203
DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0291734