Cuckoo Spit is another such name. As a child it used to be great sport to poke about in the froth with a finger ( or a stick for the squeamish) to find the insect hidden in the middle. It was always referred to it by it's common name "cuckoo spit". It can be seen in abundance on our lavender at this time of year.
The name is said to have come from the arrival of the white frothy blobs on plants coinciding with the first call of the cuckoo in spring. It looks like spittle hence that part of the name. The "cuckoo" part is a more oblique reference to the superstition of spitting to avoid bad luck whenever a cuckoo is heard. Cuckoos are in decline in Britain at the moment and so little spitting will be heard or (worse) seen. Interestingly it is known as "witches spit" in Scandinavia and there are references to it as an ingredient in the witches brew in Macbeth.
The blob of froth is produced by the nymph of the frog hopper insect. It protects the insect while it feeds on the sap of the plant. The nymph moults several times before emerging as an adult in early summer.
The frog hopper nymph removed from it's protective blob.
It is related to both cicadas and aphids. The Common Froghopper (Philaenus spumarius) is the most widespread example in the UK, although related species are found worldwide. Typically the adult froghopper is between 4mm and 7mm long. It is called a Froghopper because of the insect's resemblance to a frog when looked at from above.The adult is able to hop significant distances when disturbed.
From a gardeners point of view the frog hopper doesn't cause a lot of damage in itself but may spread disease from plant to plant. It can be dislodged with a squirt of water.
"Fruit slice" sounds much more appetising - uless you're Fungus the Bogeyman!
ReplyDeleteI'll have a piece of fly cemetery but pass on the cuckoo spit.
ReplyDeleteGood choice!
ReplyDeleteFly's cemetery that's what we call it too. It looks delish. We have a lot of cuckoo spit on the west coast, seems to have a preference for common sorrel round here. I liked your wordless Wednesday yellow montage, particularly liked to see the welsh poppies, I have friends who always weed them out, such a shame because insects love them.
ReplyDeleteWe see a lot of cuckoo spit when we're out walking the dog.It's so reminiscent of this time of year. The yellow poppies were in a friend's garden, but he let me have some seed to scatter around....
ReplyDeleteHi Janet, the cuckoo spit I hate, the fly graveyards as we called them I liked at one time don't see them so much now, mind you all the bakers are closed.
ReplyDelete