Sluggin' Along: Broad-headed Sharpshooter

This afternoon I spotted a large orange-blue leafhopper clinging to a Yellow Bell stalk. Having been photographing only small hoppers lately, I was surprised by this one's size. It's called a Broad-headed Sharpshooter (Oncometopia orbona). Like the Versute Sharpshooter and the Candy-striped Leafhopper, the Broad-headed belongs to the subfamily Cicadellinae (Sharpshooters). However, the former two are members of the tribe Cicadellini, while the latter is a member of Proconiini. Oncometopia is actually a subgenus, and O. orbona is the only common, widespread member in the Eastern US.

The colors are stunning, aren't they? Like a mosaic! You can even see the tiny black pupils in the eyes and the grooves in the orange scutellum. This bug looks to have a short ovipositor, which would make it a female. I had a tough time getting her to pose; camera-shy, she kept ducking around the other side of the stalk.