The Treehopper has been around for nearly 40 million years. This little insect is just a prodigy of weird! It looks like some sort of helicopter insect from an alien world. The treehopper is related to the cicadas and there are over 3000 species. Their most unique feature is the helmet, which comes in a variety of interesting forms and sizes. The larvae’s primary source of food comes from the underside of leaves feeding on the sap of leaves making it a sap-sucking insect. The female treehopper has two choices when laying her eggs. She can either insert it into the plant tissue or simple lay it on the surface of the plant. In some species the females guards her eggs until they hatch, while other leave them. Some of these insect eggs are protected by ants, which care for them and in return the treehopper produces a honey-dew for them. They start off as an egg, then grow into a nymph and finally enter the adult stage. The amazing antenna-like round helmet is certainly eye-catching! While they actually look like eyes, they are simply ornamental and it is speculated that it might deter predators or provide additional sensory input.
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/weird-week-continues-brazilian-treehopper-randy-bilesky/?published=t
gogreenpestcontrol.ca Ladner Tsawwassen Delta Randy Bilesky
http://www.delta-optimist.com/opinion/blogs/blog-weird-week-continues-the-brazilian-treehopper-1.23278705