Baby bug vomit

 There’s a story that is running in the newspapers about a dangerous new froth that is appearing on plants. 

WARNING

It shouts. Scientists say…. don’t touch…report….

The original article was much more balanced and interesting https://www.examinerlive.co.uk/news/uk-world-news/warning-not-touch-weird-spittle-27039249 but let’s not let the facts get in the way of an attention grabbing headline. It was an interesting case of journalistic Chinese whispers and so by the time the Sun journalist had read the headline and ‘re-written’ it, you would have thought it was the next Coronavirus.

If, like me, you like spending time outside then this stuff isn’t new. However, if your lockdown walking became a habit then you might be seeing it for the first time. 

These articles have reminded me of my mum and one of the last days of her life. It was a good day. Her sisters had come to visit and she rallied. We laughed and our conversation rambled from one topic to another. As we were talking about Masterchef and the pretentious ‘waft of hay’, ‘fennel dust’ and ‘foam’ we started to talk about this thing that the newspapers have decided is dangerous.

“And that foam,” my uncle said, banging the table, “It’s just like that stuff that used to be on plants when we were kids. Do you remember? I think it was called cuckoo spit?”

We all agreed, laughing heartily.

“We used to collect it up and make sleeping potions for our dollies,” one of my Aunts said.

“You don’t see it any more,” said another.

I had to disagree. It was May and the first globule had appeared in mum’s garden on the Cistus. 

“Is it actually cuckoo’s spit?” my mum asked; brain still intact, wanting to know why right until the end. “I’ve always wondered because I’ve never heard a cuckoo in this garden.”

“Maybe they spit when they are flying over.”

Hmmmm. None of us were convinced.

We decided to ask google.

We found out that it was protective foam that the nymphs (babies) of the frog hopper bug vomit up. They get coated in it and it protects them from being eaten. These nymphs are sometimes called spittle bugs and the reason it’s called cuckoo spit is because froghopper nymphs are around at the same time that you hear cuckoos (May/June) and it looks like spit.

“But it used to be everywhere when we were kids,” my Aunt protested.

I was adamant that it’s just that adults don’t go outside enough but I think she was right and it probably has something to do with pesticides. Environmentalists should be proud that cuckoo spit is back (along with daisies in lawns)

But why have ‘scientists’ suddenly given ‘stark warning’?

It turns out that they are just trying to monitor a plant disease that these creatures are prone to getting. Xylella fastidious causes plants to wilt and sometimes die and hasn’t yet been discovered in the UK. Scientists are monitoring to see if it does spread from diseased plants brought from abroad and the way to do that is sample some of the Spittlebugs.

But why mustn’t we touch them?

Because you might kill them and we’ve only just got them back in significant numbers for the Daily Mail to notice.

We googled what a froghopper and it’s nymph look like.

I think we can all agree that they are truly terrifying.