Community identification
Lace bug
Stephanitis pyrioides (example: Azalea lace bug)
- Order & Family
- Order: Hemiptera, Family: Tingidae
- Size
- 3 to 4 mm (1/8 inch) in length
Natural Habitat
Found on the undersides of leaves of various landscape plants and ornamental trees, often in sunny locations.
Diet & Feeding
Herbivorous; they use piercing-sucking mouthparts to feed on plant juices (chlorophyll) from leaf cells.
Behavior Patterns
They are typically slow-moving and spend most of their lives on the host plant. They leave behind dark, varnish-like spots of excrement on the leaf undersides. Adults have distinctive lacy, transparent wings.
Risks & Benefits
They are agricultural and garden pests that cause stippling (yellow spots) and silvery appearance on leaves, potentially weakening the plant. They do not pose a direct health risk to humans.