Keeled Treehoppper

Entylia carinata: I ran into one of these small, ornate treehoppers this past weekend. They are Hemiptera, true bugs, meaning they suck plant juices, instead of, say, chewing plants. (As it happens, they’re in the same infraorder as cicadas.)

Also as it happens, I started to read Ed Yong’s An Immense World on Tuesday. The intro mentions treehoppers, and the (paperback) photo section includes images of four species of treehoppers, including what looks like this species! Why? Because they’re another example of the book’s exploration of the sensory world of animals. Treehoppers communicate by sending vibrations through the plants they feed on. These are inaudible to us, but can be converted into sound that sounds like “birds, monkeys, or musical instruments.”