aphid
Sign in to saveAphids are small sap-sucking insects in the family Aphididae. 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 col
AI overview
Aphids are tiny insects that feed on plant sap and are known by common names like greenfly and blackfly, though they come in various colors including white and black. They reproduce rapidly without needing males, with females giving birth to live young that can already be pregnant themselves, which allows their populations to grow very quickly.
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Article
28 sectionsContents
- Etymology
- Distribution
- Evolution
- Fossil history
- Taxonomy
- Phylogeny
- External
- Internal
- Anatomy
- Diet
- Carotenoids and photoheterotrophy
- Reproduction
- Ecology
- Ant mutualism
- Bacterial endosymbiosis
- Predators
- Anti-predator defences
- Parasitoids
- Plant-aphid interactions
- Sociality
- Interactions with humans
- Pest status
- Control
- In human culture
- See also
- Notes
- References
- External links
Aphids are small sap-sucking insects in the family Aphididae. 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.
The life cycle of some species involves an alternation between two species of host plants, for example between an annual crop and a woody plant. Some species feed on only one type of plant, while others are generalists, colonizing many plant groups. About 5,000 species of aphid have been described, all included in the family Aphididae. Around 400 of these are found on food and fiber crops, and many are serious pests of agriculture and forestry, as well as an annoyance for gardeners. So-called dairying ants have a mutualistic relationship with aphids, tending them for their honeydew and protecting them from predators.