SEASONAL DISPERSAL AND HOST PREFERENCE BY ADULT SHARPNOSED LEAFHOPPERS (HOMOPTERA: CICADELLIDAE) IN NORTH CAROLINA WOODLANDS1

Scaphytopius spp. were sweep-sampled weekly from 20 April to 20 November 1984 in creeping blueberry, Vaccinium crassifolium Andrews, near a commercial blueberry field in North Carolina to establish migration patterns. Population growth curves of adults were compared to those of 5th-instar nymphs. Differences in curve patterns indicated adult dispersal from creeping blueberry during the first two generations and return in the 3rd generation. Adults were sampled in wild highbush blueberry, V. corymbosum L.; sheepkill, Kalmia angustifolic (Small); huckleberry, Gaylussacia frondosa (L.) Torrey & Gray; and creeping blueberry to determine inter-host dispersal and host preference. Analysis of variance on numbers of captured males showed significant differences between host species for S. magdalensis (Provancher), but none for S. verecundus (Van Duzee). The former species preferred sheepkill, highbush blueberry and huckleberry, while the latter was uniformly distributed among all four host species. It was recommended that sampling programs for wild S. magdalensis be conducted in huckleberry due to abundance of this host and ease of sampling.