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- Latin Name: Pemphigus spp.
- Latin Family Name: Aphididae
- Common Name: Poplar Gall Aphid
- Other Names: Poplar stem gall, leaf petiole gall
Origin:
There are several species of aphids in this genus, possibly native to North America, and found wherever poplar or cottonwood grow.
Biology:
As with most aphids it is the eggs that over-winter, deposited by females on the bark of cottonwood trees. These hatch in the spring to nymphs that feed on the petioles (the stem) of new leaves, causing the stem to swell and create a gall that completely encloses the aphids. The next generation will include winged females that fly to the alternate host plants in the Mustard family, and several successive generations will feed on the roots of these plants. This may include various crop plants as well, allowing this aphid to be an economic pest. In the
- Latin Name: Macrosiphum rosae
- Latin Family Name: Aphididae
- Common Name: Rose Aphid
- Other Names: N/A
Origin:
Originally known from Europe, but it now can be found throughout the U.S. where mild temperatures allow it.
Biology:
These aphids feed primarily on roses and pyracantha, and when feeding in heavy numbers can cause distortion to new buds and leaves. Reproduction throughout the growing season is by parthenogenesis, with females producing living nymphs, and with several generations occurring on the same plant. In the fall males will be produced to mate with females, which then deposit eggs on the stems of the roses, with these eggs over-wintering. The eggs hatch quickly once new growth appears in the spring.
Identification:
This is a medium-sized aphid with both green and pink forms occurring together
- Latin Name: Illinoia liriodendri
- Latin Family Name: Aphididae
- Common Name: Tuliptree Aphid
- Other Names: N/A
Origin:
The tulip tree is native to the eastern U.S., so the aphid presumably also is a native species, now found throughout North America wherever these popular shade trees grow.
Biology:
While the tree can withstand heavy populations of the aphids, feeding on the lower surface of the wide leaves, the primary complaint is the heavy production of honeydew. With large aphid populations the effect is to have the honeydew “raining” down from the tree, coating all surfaces below with a solid, sticky layer of the material. Since tulip trees are favorites along sidewalks and in parks this creates problems for cars and people in the area.
Identification:
These
- Latin Name: Eriosoma lanigerum
- Latin Family Name: Aphididae
- Common Name: Woolly Apple Aphid
- Other Names: N/A
Origin:
Native to eastern North America, where it originally infested apple trees and elm, as alternate hosts. Now found throughout North America.
Biology:
A very serious pest on apple and other plants in the same family, including pyracantha, cotoneaster, pear, and others such as hawthorn or elm. The aphids may infest stems or roots, and when feeding on the roots may feed undetected as their population grows. On tender bark of stems the feeding causes large swollen areas that may eventually girdle that stem and cause death of the plant part. When large aggregations feed on the roots the foliage of the plant may turn yellow, and as colonies grow they may begin to feed on foliage as well as the stems. Eggs are rarely produced,
- Latin Name: Eriosoma americanum
- Latin Family Name: Aphididae
- Common Name: Woolly Elm Aphid
- Other Names: N/A
Origin:
A native species in eastern North America, and found wherever trees such as Saskatoon (= Juneberry, Serviceberry, wild plum) and American Elm are grown.
Biology:
These aphids are very similar in appearance and habits to the Woolly Apple Aphid, attaching themselves to the thin bark of twigs or roots to suck plant fluids. The effect on the plant is to cause swollen and knotted areas that may lead to the death of that twig or root beyond the feeding site. In colder regions they overwinter as eggs or nymphs and in warmer areas may overwinter on the bark as mature females. Eggs are deposited in the fall and hatch in early spring, and after 2 generations on a plant winged forms are produced that may then migrate to other
- Latin Name: Crematogaster sp.
- Latin Family Name: Formicidae
- Common Name: Acrobat Ant
- Other Names: N/A
Origin:
Several species are native to North America, and they can be found throughout the United States.
Biology:
The common name is derived from the habit of the workers in which they arch their abdomen over their thorax when they are agitated. Nests may be found in almost any circumstance. Outdoors they commonly will be within wooden materials such as stumps, hollow trees, or firewood, as well as under yard debris or other materials on the soil. Indoors they may nest in voids in walls or ceilings, in old termite or carpenter ant nests in wood, or within soft materials such as foam insulation, which they hollow out themselves. Moisture will be an added draw for Acrobat ants. Colonies generally are medium sized, with several hundred
- Latin Name: Formica exsectoides
- Latin Family Name: Forimcidae
- Common Name: Allegheny Mound Ant
- Other Names: N/A
Origin:
This is a native species in eastern North America.
Biology:
This ant is one of the most common mound ant species in the eastern half of the U.S. and southern Canada. Workers create a large mound of debris on top of the soil, expanding the size over the years as the colony grows, often growing to a diameter of several feet and 3 to 4 feet high. The workers have no stinger, but they are capable of biting and then spraying a mist of acid onto that bite wound, causing a stinging sensation to the person attacked. The workers also inject this acid into plants that surround their nest mound, often killing these plants for many feet around the nest. The colony has multiple queens and development from egg to adult ant
- Latin Name: Linepithema humile
- Latin Family Name: Formicidae
- Common Name: Argentine Ant
- Other Names: N/A
Origin:
Thought to have arrived from Brazil in ships transporting coffee around 1891, and now found throughout North America, in Hawaii, and on most other continents throughout the world.
Biology:
Though the Argentine Ant is a small, non-stinging ant, it is a very territorial and aggressive ant that will drive away or kill competing ant species. Neighboring colonies of Argentine ants appear not to be aggressive toward each other, allowing for the rapid spread and domination by this species. Colonies contain thousands of workers and many queens, and mating will take place within the confines of the colony. New colonies are often formed by budding off from the parent colony. Nesting is usually in the soil, commonly under concrete
- Latin Name: Pheidole sp.
- Latin Family Name: Formicidae
- Common Name: Bigheaded Ants
- Other Names: N/A
Origin:
Several species of this genus are native to the southern United States, and they are also a common imported pest problem in Hawaii.
Biology:
These ants are similar to fire ants in appearance, but may be distinguished by the 12-segmented antennae with a 3-segmented club at the end, as well as by the “major” workers in the colony which have extremely enlarged heads, so large that on occasion they have difficulty walking. Colonies are normally established in the soil, but occasionally invade structures as they forage. Exterior nests are located under debris, logs, rocks, or other objects on the soil, as well as within cavities in rotting wood or old termite galleries. Big-headed ants feed on a variety of materials,
- Latin Name: Veromessor sp.
- Latin Family Name: Formicidae
- Common Name: Black Harvester Ant
- Other Names: N/A
Origin:
These are native species in North America and are most common in the southwestern quarter of the U.S.
Biology:
As with most other harvester ants the black species rarely enters structures. They restrict their diet to seeds found outside, and forage at dusk for these natural foods. In agricultural fields they may be a problem as they gather seeds intended as crops. The nest opening may often be seen as large cracks at the soil surface rather than the wide circle of cleared soil around an opening as with red harvester ants. The harvester ants are capable of stinging but would do so only when directly threatened, such as when confined within clothing or if a person stands or sits on a nest opening or on foraging ants.