Fulgora laternaria

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Fulgora laternaria
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Arthropoda Class: Insecta Order: Hemiptera Family: Fulgoridae Genus: Fulgora Species: F. laternaria
Binomial name
Fulgora laternaria Linnaeus, 1758

The fulgorid insect Fulgora laternaria (often misspelled "lanternaria"), is a Central and South American planthopper known by a large variety of common names including lantern fly, peanut bug, peanut-headed lanternfly, alligator bug, machaca, and jequitiranaboia (the latter terms used in the Amazon region and elsewhere in Brazil). It is as long as 3 inches, has a protuberance at its head that resembles that of a lizard or a serpent, and which was originally - and falsely - believed to be luminescent. It protects itself by displaying fake eyes on its wings, and perhaps with its quite unusual head. A very similar species, Fulgora lampetis shares much of the same range within South America, and many museum and commercial specimens identified as laternaria are actually this species. Though almost indistinguishable, F. lampetis has slightly more vibrant coloration, and a more swollen head protuberance when viewed from above.

In several countries, such as Ecuador, Colombia and Venezuela, there exists the myth that if somebody is bitten by the machaca, he or she must have sex within 24 hours to prevent an otherwise incurable death. The insect is actually harmless to people.

[edit] External links

• These bugs followed the light from the Sonoran Arthropod Studies Institute