cotton fleahopper

The cotton fleahopper (Psallus seriatus) is a small, green North American mirid bug that feeds on young cotton squares and new growth, as well as many other cultivated and wild plants. It is one of several hundred insect species that attack cotton plants.12

Plant bugs, which include the cotton fleahopper, belong to the insect order Heteroptera. The family Miridae, to which the cotton fleahopper belongs, is one of the largest heteropteran families, with approximately 10,000 species. These insects are typically small, soft-bodied, and less than 10 mm long, identifiable by their four-segmented antennae and beak.3

Cotton fleahoppers overwinter as eggs within the tissues of weeds. After hatching in the spring, the nymphs feed on weeds before migrating to cotton fields to feed on the plants. They later return to weeds, completing their life cycle in about 22 days, with potentially seven to eight generations per season. Insecticide sprays can effectively control the cotton fleahopper.3