Grass ID (Cumbria, UK) (1 Viewer)

[gillean55]

Hello

Can anyone tell me what sort of grass this is? I'm hoping it might help confirm the ID of the planthopper (which is about 6mm long) shown in the second photo.

Thanks

Paul K

 

[Acid John]

Could be a Stenocranus sp.(major?) the bug that is.

 

[gillean55]

Thanks for that Acid John!

I'd narrowed it down to either Stenocranus major, S. minutus or S. fuscovittatus, and I also favoured S. major.

However, there are no county records for any of these species, as far as I'm aware, and so I was hoping to gather together any supporting evidence - and I thought that knowing the plant might be useful.

Regards

Paul K

 

[Nutcracker]

How host-specific are planthoppers?

Not certain on the grass, but it looks reasonably like one of the Meadow-grasses (Poa spp.) which are generally abundant.

 

[gillean55]

Thanks for that, Nutcracker.

Of the three planthopper species of interest, all I know is that Stenocranus major (which seems like the best bet, all things considered) has been linked to Phalaris arundinacea - at least according to British Bugs. I did a Google image search when I first read about this, but it didn't seem to bear much resemblance to the grass in my photos. However, I had another look at it this morning, and some of the images included on the Nature Spot site look similar to me:

https://www.naturespot.org.uk/species/reed-canary-grass

But then again, so do the meadow-grasses you suggested!

No doubt it can be found on a variety of different plant species, and so it's probably not worth pursuing this line any further.

For info, I've submitted the sighting to iRecord as a probable Stenocranus major, and I'll see what they (eventually!) come back with.

Regards

Paul K

 

[Nutcracker]

I's suspect that when planthoppers plan thopping, they have minimal control over where they end up o

 

[King Edward]

The wide-leaved grass in the lower centre of the photo is Phalaris arundinacea.

 

[gillean55]

Many thanks for that, King Edward - you've made my day!

 

[Nutcracker]

For clarity, my ID was on the flower/seed spikes, which definitely aren't Phalaris arundinacea! Needless to say, grasses frequently grow several species mixed together :t:

 

[aeshna5]

For clarity, my ID was on the flower/seed spikes, which definitely aren't Phalaris arundinacea! Needless to say, grasses frequently grow several species mixed together :t:

Yes I think they look most like Poa pratensis.