| Aphidoletes aphidimyza | |
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| Midge larva (center) in a pea aphid colony | |
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| Species: | A. aphidimyza |
| Binomial name | |
| Aphidoletes aphidimyza (Rondani, 1847) | |
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Aphidoletes aphidimyza, commonly referred to as the aphid midge, is a midge whose larvae feed on over 70 aphid species, including the green peach aphid.
The adults are small (less than 1⁄8 inch [3.2 mm] long), black, delicate flies (similar to a fungus gnat) that live for an average of 10 days, feeding on aphid honeydew. They hide beneath the leaves during the day, and are active at night.
Females deposit 100-250 tiny (1⁄64 inch [0.40 mm]) shiny orange eggs singly or in small groups among aphid colonies that hatch in 2–3 days. After 3–7 days the larvae drop to the ground and burrow 3⁄4 to 1+1⁄2 inches (1.9 to 3.8 cm) inches into the soil to pupate. They are most effective at 68–80 °F (20–27 °C) and high relative humidity.
The small, bright orange, slug-like larvae inject a toxin into aphids' leg joints to paralyze them and then suck out the aphid body contents through a hole bitten in the thorax. Larvae can consume aphids much larger than themselves and may kill many more aphids than they eat when aphid populations are high. A single larva grows up to 1⁄8 inch (0.32 cm) long and kills 4-65 aphids per day.
The aphid midge is commercially grown by insectaries for use as biological pest control in commercial greenhouse crops. It is supplied as pupae in trays or bottles containing a moist substrate such as vermiculite or peat moss for the pupae to complete their development. Once they are placed in the greenhouse they usually emerge from the shipping container as adults to begin egg-laying in 3–7 days depending on temperature.
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.
Galls or cecidia are a kind of swelling growth on the external tissues of plants, fungi, or animals. Plant galls are abnormal outgrowths of plant tissues, similar to benign tumors or warts in animals. They can be caused by various parasites, from viruses, fungi and bacteria, to other plants, insects and mites. Plant galls are often highly organized structures so that the cause of the gall can often be determined without the actual agent being identified. This applies particularly to some insect and mite plant galls. The study of plant galls is known as cecidology.
Helicoverpa zea, commonly known as the corn earworm, is a species in the family Noctuidae. The larva of the moth Helicoverpa zea is a major agricultural pest. Since it is polyphagous during the larval stage, the species has been given many different common names, including the cotton bollworm and the tomato fruitworm. It also consumes a wide variety of other crops.
The Colorado potato beetle, also known as the Colorado beetle, the ten-striped spearman, the ten-lined potato beetle, or the potato bug, is a major pest of potato crops. It is about 10 mm long, with a bright yellow/orange body and five bold brown stripes along the length of each of its elytra. Native to the Rocky Mountains, it spread rapidly in potato crops across America and then Europe from 1859 onwards.
Leptoconops torrens is a species of small biting flies in the no-see-um family Ceratopogonidae. They were first mentioned in writing by Charles Henry Tyler Townsend in 1893. The name Leptoconops carteri is a junior synonym of L. torrens. They are prevalent in the southwestern and southeastern areas of the United States. In early stages of life, L. torrens flies dwell in soil, then emerge to feed and breed as fully developed adults.
The codling moth is a member of the Lepidopteran family Tortricidae. They are major pests to agricultural crops, mainly fruits such as apples and pears. Because the larvae are not able to feed on leaves, they are highly dependent on fruits as a food source and thus have a significant impact on crops. The caterpillars bore into fruit and stop it from growing, which leads to premature ripening. Various means of control, including chemical, biological, and preventive, have been implemented. This moth has a widespread distribution, being found on six continents. Adaptive behavior such as diapause and multiple generations per breeding season have allowed this moth to persist even during years of bad climatic conditions.
Eacles imperialis, the imperial moth, is a member of the family Saturniidae and subfamily Ceratocampinae. It is found mainly in the East of South America and North America, from the center of Argentina to south Canada. The species was first described by Dru Drury in 1773.
Ornithoptera alexandrae, the Queen Alexandra's birdwing, is the largest species of butterfly in the world, with females reaching wingspans slightly in excess of 25 cm to 28 cm. This birdwing is restricted to the forests of the Oro Province in eastern Papua New Guinea.
Hippodamia convergens, commonly known as the convergent lady beetle, is one of the most common lady beetles in North America and is found throughout the continent. Aphids form their main diet and they are used for the biological control of these pests.
Parasitoid wasps are a large group of hymenopteran superfamilies, with all but the wood wasps (Orussoidea) being in the wasp-waisted Apocrita. As parasitoids, they lay their eggs on or in the bodies of other arthropods, sooner or later causing the death of these hosts. Different species specialise in hosts from different insect orders, most often Lepidoptera, though some select beetles, flies, or bugs; the spider wasps (Pompilidae) exclusively attack spiders. More rarely, parasitoid wasps may use plant seeds as hosts, such as Torymus druparum.
Stratiolaelaps scimitus is a small (0.5 mm) light brown mite that lives in the top 1⁄2 inch (13 mm) layer of soil. As a natural predator of fungus gnat pupae and of the snail parasite Riccardoella limacum it is used by gardeners and snail breeders for biological pest control. Stratiolaelaps scimitus is also commonly used by reptile, amphibian and invertebrate keepers as a preventative or reactive measure against grain mites and reptile mites. Whereas most mite treatments are based on synthetic chemicals, predatory mites are used as a biological method of preventing and curing mite infestations.
Rhagoletis mendax is a species of tephritid fruit fly known by the common name blueberry maggot. The blueberry maggot is closely related to the apple maggot, a larger fruit fly in the same genus. It is a major pest of plant species in the Ericaceae family, such as blueberry, cranberry, and huckleberry. The larva is 5 to 8 mm long, apodous, and white with chewing mouthparts. Female adults are 4.75mm in length, males are slightly smaller. Both adults are mostly black in color with white stripes, orange-red eyes, and a single pair of clear wings with black banding. The adult female fly lays a single egg per blueberry, and when the larva hatches it consumes the fruit, usually finishing the entire berry in under 3 weeks and rendering it unmarketable. The larva then falls to the soil and pupates. Adult flies emerge, mate, and females oviposit when blueberry plants are producing fruit. Each female fly can lay 25 to 100 eggs in their lifetime.
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.
Coleomegilla maculata, commonly known as the spotted lady beetle, pink spotted lady beetle or twelve-spotted lady beetle, is a large coccinellid beetle native to North America. The adults and larvae feed primarily on aphids and the species has been used as a biological control agent. Based on name connotation and to avoid confusion with other species also called "spotted ladybeetle", spotted pink ladybeetle is probably the most appropriate common name for this species.
Harmonia testudinaria, commonly known as the tortoise-shelled ladybird, is a species of ladybird belonging to the family Coccinellidae. The tortoise shelled-ladybird occurs in Australia, New Guinea, Indonesia and Hawaii.
Choristoneura freemani, the western spruce budworm, is a species of moth of the family Tortricidae. It is the most destructive defoliator of coniferous forests in western North America.
A gnat is any of many species of tiny flying insects in the dipterid suborder Nematocera, especially those in the families Mycetophilidae, Anisopodidae and Sciaridae. They can be both biting and non-biting. Most often they fly in large numbers, called clouds. "Gnat" is a loose descriptive category rather than a phylogenetic or other technical term, so there is no scientific consensus on what constitutes a gnat. Some entomologists consider only non-biting flies to be gnats. Certain universities and institutes also distinguish eye gnats: the Smithsonian Institution describes them as "non-biting flies, no bigger than a few grains of salt, ... attracted to fluids secreted by your eyes".
Dendroctonus adjunctus, the roundheaded pine beetle, is a species of bark beetle in the family Curculionidae found in North America. A parasite, the roundheaded pine beetle feeds on and eventually kills pine trees of several species in Guatemala, Mexico, and the Southern United States.
Aphidius is a genus of insects of the family Braconidae.