This insect is often overlooked by growers but probably causes considerable damage. Which insect is it?

This insect is often overlooked by growers but probably causes considerable damage. Which insect is it?

• A. Grasshopper
• B. Potato leafhopper
• C. Pea aphid
• D. Alfalfa weevil

Answer: (B)

Small, overlooked pests can cause big damage, especially when they feed quietly on new growth and signs are subtle at first. The insect in question is the potato leafhopper. It’s tiny and highly mobile, so it can escape notice in a field that looks mostly healthy. Yet it pierces plant tissue and withdraws sap, and the saliva it injects disrupts tissue growth. The result is hopper burn: yellowing and bronzing of young leaves and stunted growth, which is especially damaging to fast-regrowing crops like alfalfa. This combination of being hard to detect and capable of causing meaningful injury makes the potato leafhopper the likely culprit. The other insects listed are larger or more conspicuous when present, or their damage is obvious enough to spot sooner, so growers are more likely to notice them before they cause as much hidden yield loss.

Small, overlooked pests can cause big damage, especially when they feed quietly on new growth and signs are subtle at first. The insect in question is the potato leafhopper. It’s tiny and highly mobile, so it can escape notice in a field that looks mostly healthy. Yet it pierces plant tissue and withdraws sap, and the saliva it injects disrupts tissue growth. The result is hopper burn: yellowing and bronzing of young leaves and stunted growth, which is especially damaging to fast-regrowing crops like alfalfa.

This combination of being hard to detect and capable of causing meaningful injury makes the potato leafhopper the likely culprit. The other insects listed are larger or more conspicuous when present, or their damage is obvious enough to spot sooner, so growers are more likely to notice them before they cause as much hidden yield loss.