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Aphids are small sap-sucking insects and members of the superfamily Aphidoidea. Common names include greenfly and blackfly, although individuals within a species can vary widely in color. The group includes the fluffy white woolly aphids. A typical life cycle involves flightless females giving live birth to female nymphs—who may also be already pregnant, an adaptation scientists call telescoping generations—without the involvement of males. Maturing rapidly, females breed profusely so that the number of these insects multiplies quickly. Winged females may develop later in the season, allowing the insects to colonize new plants. In temperate regions, a phase of sexual reproduction occurs in the autumn, with the insects often overwintering as eggs.
Woolly aphids are sap-sucking insects that produce a filamentous waxy white covering which resembles cotton or wool. The adults are winged and move to new locations where they lay egg masses. The nymphs often form large cottony masses on twigs, for protection from predators.
The gall adelgid is an adelgid species that produces galls in spruce trees. They infect the new buds of native spruce trees in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains in the spring. They also attack blue spruce to a lesser degree. The insects complete two generations within the year. They require two different trees for its life cycle, the second being the Rocky Mountain Douglas-fir. They may also attack Sitka, Engelmann, or white spruce. The many different species of adelgids produce different galls on different spruce species.
Insect mandibles are a pair of appendages near the insect's mouth, and the most anterior of the three pairs of oral appendages. Their function is typically to grasp, crush, or cut the insect's food, or to defend against predators or rivals. Insect mandibles, which appear to be evolutionarily derived from legs, move in the horizontal plane unlike those of vertebrates, which appear to be derived from gill arches and move vertically.
Picromerus bidens, the spiny shieldbug or spiked shieldbug, is a carnivorous species of shield bug in the family Pentatomidae.
Psylla pyri, commonly known as the pear psylla or pear psyllid, is an insect in the family Psyllidae. Originating in Europe and Asia, it has spread to North America. It is a pest of pear trees, sucking the sap, damaging the foliage, flowers and fruit and diminishing the crop.
Coccinellidae is a widespread family of small beetles. They are commonly known as ladybugs in North America and ladybirds in Britain; "lady" refers to mother Mary. Entomologists prefer the names ladybird beetles or lady beetles to avoid confusion with true bugs. The more than 6,000 described species have a global distribution and are found in a variety of habitats. They are oval beetles with a domed back and flat underside. They are sexually dimorphic; adult females are larger than males. Many of the species have conspicuous aposematic (warning) colours and patterns, such as red with black spots, that warn potential predators that they are distasteful.
Aphelinus mali is a parasitoid wasp that exploits the woolly apple aphid, a pest of apple trees. It is native to the northeastern United States but has been introduced to other parts of the world as a biological pest control agent.
Aphis gossypii is a tiny insect, an aphid ("greenfly") in the superfamily Aphidoidea in the order Hemiptera. It is a true bug and sucks sap from plants. It is a widely distributed pest of a variety of agricultural crops in the families Cucurbitaceae, Rutaceae and Malvaceae. Common names include cotton aphid, melon aphid and melon and cotton aphid.
The black bean aphid is a small black insect in the genus Aphis, with a broad, soft body, a member of the order Hemiptera. Other common names include blackfly, bean aphid, and beet leaf aphid. In the warmer months of the year, it is found in large numbers on the undersides of leaves and on the growing tips of host plants, including various agricultural crops and many wild and ornamental plants. Both winged and wingless forms exist, and at this time of year, they are all females. They suck sap from stems and leaves and cause distortion of the shoots, stunted plants, reduced yield, and spoiled crops. This aphid also acts as a vector for viruses that cause plant disease, and the honeydew it secretes may encourage the growth of sooty mould. It breeds profusely by live birth, but its numbers are kept in check, especially in the later part of the summer, by various predatory and parasitic insects. Ants feed on the honeydew it produces, and take active steps to remove predators. It is a widely distributed pest of agricultural crops and can be controlled by chemical or biological means. In the autumn, winged forms move to different host plants, where both males and females are produced. These mate and the females lay eggs which overwinter.
Pemphigus spyrothecae, or the poplar spiral gall aphid, is a social insect which exhibits apparent altruistic behaviors. The aphids form galls and act as colony defenders, at times sacrificing their own lives to do so. It has been shown that colony defense is more likely in habitats that are difficult to obtain and can hold a large number of individuals. These gall locations are crucial because plants have a short window in which a gall can be produced. Thus, it is important for there to be a defense system that enables the aphids to retain their galls. The need for defense arises when the gall is opened up to allow winged aphid migrants to leave and to release any waste. The process of repairing the holes can take up to 10 days; during this time, the gall is susceptible to intruding predators.
Euceraphis betulae, the birch aphid or silver birch aphid, is a species of aphid in the order Hemiptera. It is a tiny green insect with a soft body and wings. It is found living on the European silver birch tree where it feeds and multiplies on the buds and leaves by sucking sap.
Aphis craccivora, variously known as the cowpea aphid, groundnut aphid or black legume aphid, is a true bug in the family Aphididae. Originally of probable Palearctic origin, it is now an invasive species of cosmopolitan distribution.
Eriosoma lanigerum, the woolly apple aphid, woolly aphid or American blight, is an aphid in the superfamily Aphidoidea in the order Hemiptera. It is a true bug and sucks sap from plants.
Anthocoris nemoralis is a true bug in the family Anthocoridae. The species is native to Europe and is introduced in North America. It is a predator of aphids, spider mites and jumping plant lice, and is therefore used as a biological pest control agent.
Niphanda fusca is a parasitic butterfly primarily found in East Asian countries such as Japan and Korea. It is a "cuckoo-type" parasite of the ant Camponotus japonicus. It utilizes chemical mimicry to trick the host worker ants into adopting it while it is a third-instar caterpillar. From there, it is fed mouth-to-mouth by the worker ants as though it were one of their own young.
Phyllaphis fagi, the woolly beech aphid, is a species of aphid in the family Aphididae.
Deraeocoris brevis is a species of predatory plant bug in the family Miridae. It is native to North America where it feeds on plant pests in apple and pear orchards.
Elatobium abietinum, commonly known as the spruce aphid or green spruce aphid, is a species of aphid in the subfamily Aphidinae that feeds on spruce, and occasionally fir. It is native to Northern, Central and Eastern Europe and has spread to Western Europe, North America and elsewhere.
Synonycha grandis, commonly known as Giant bamboo ladybird, is a species of lady beetle found in Australia, Oceania and Southern Asia.
References
- 1 2 Preston-Mafham, Rod; Preston-Mafham, Ken (1993). The Encyclopedia of Land Invertebrate Behaviour . MIT Press. p. 281. ISBN 978-0-262-16137-4.
- 1 2 3 4 Aoki Shigeyuki (1977). "Colophina clematis (Homoptera, Pemphigidae), an Aphid Species with "Soldiers"". Kontyu, Tokyo. 45 (2): 276–282. ISSN 0915-5805.
- ↑ Costa, James T. (2006). The Other Insect Societies. Harvard University Press. pp. 220–221. ISBN 978-0-674-02163-1.