Rhododendron Leafhopper - Graphocephala fennahi

Length 8 to 10 mm. This large and striking species is native to the USA, where it is known as the Scarlet and Green Leafhopper.

Where Rhododendron is present.

Adult: July to November. Adults can be found from mid-summer until quite late in the autumn, laying eggs in the leaf buds which hatch the following spring.

Both adults and larvae feed on Rhododendron sap, and it is one of the few insects to use this shrub as a foodplant.

It was introduced to Europe in the early 1900s, and can now be found widely in southern Britain in areas where the food plant is present.

Infrequent in Leicestershire and Rutland with only 5 records to 2015, although it may be numerous where it occurs.