What's up sucker? X disease vector feeding observations and field applications

X disease (XD), a disease caused by a phytoplasma, has become an epidemic in Washington for the first time in more than 70 years and is critically impacting the stone fruit industry once again. The phytoplasma that causes this disease is a wall-less, intracellular bacterium that is spread into the phloem of Prunus trees by root grafting and by leafhopper feeding (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae). XD can frequently cause underdeveloped and misshapen fruit on economically important crops: cherries, peaches, and nectarines. Several leafhoppers are known to transmit the phytoplasma, but Colladonus montanus reductus (Van Duzee) is the most common in Washington orchards, and is one of the least studied. Information about feeding and oviposition locations of these leafhoppers is important as it could be used to coordinate management strategies to stop the spread of XD. Knowing alternative hosts for the leafhoppers may allow us to focus removal efforts on these plants when managing the vector and investigate if these plants could be reservoirs for the phytoplasma. This study focuses on leafhopper feeding preference with fruit trees and common weedy hosts and presents data on the active feeding, as well as plants that have been oviposited on.