The hawthorn-carrot aphid, (''Dysaphis crataegi''), also known as ''Dysaphis (Dysaphis) crataegi'', is an
aphid
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 t ...
in the superfamily
Aphidoidea in the order
Hemiptera. It is a true bug and sucks sap from plants.
Taxonomy
The hawthorn-carrot aphid was
first described by the German entomologist
Johann Heinrich Kaltenbach in 1843.
It has three
subspecies in Europe. All overwinter on their primary
host,
hawthorn
Hawthorn or Hawthorns may refer to:
Plants
* '' Crataegus'' (hawthorn), a large genus of shrubs and trees in the family Rosaceae
* ''Rhaphiolepis'' (hawthorn), a genus of about 15 species of evergreen shrubs and small trees in the family Rosace ...
trees (''Crataegus'') spp., but each migrates to a different secondary host in the family
Apiaceae
Apiaceae or Umbelliferae is a family of mostly aromatic flowering plants named after the type genus '' Apium'' and commonly known as the celery, carrot or parsley family, or simply as umbellifers. It is the 16th-largest family of flowering plan ...
during the summer; ''D. c. crataegi'' moves to
wild carrot
''Daucus carota'', whose common names include wild carrot, European wild carrot, bird's nest, bishop's lace, and Queen Anne's lace (North America), is a flowering plant in the family Apiaceae. It is native to temperate regions of the Old World ...
(''Daucus carota''), ''D. c. kunzei'' to
wild parsnip Wild parsnip is a common name for several plants and may refer to:
__NOTOC__
*Wild parsnip (''Pastinaca sativa''), is a Eurasian weed with edible root but toxic sap in the leaves and stems
*Garden angelica (wild celery)
*Giant hogweed ('' Heracleum ...
(''Pastinaca sativa'') and ''D. c. aethusae'' to
hedge parsley (''Torilis'' spp.) or
fool's parsley
''Aethusa cynapium'' (fool's parsley, fool's cicely, or poison parsley) is an annual (rarely biennial) herb in the flowering plant family Apiaceae, native to Europe, western Asia, and northwest Africa. It is the only member of the genus ''Aethus ...
(''Aethusa cynapium''). Two further subspecies are found to Asia.
Description
On the primary host, these aphids are about long, with short
antennae and short
siphunculi
The cornicle (or siphuncule) is one of a pair of small upright backward-pointing tubes found on the dorsal side of the 5th or 6th abdominal segments of aphids. They are sometimes mistaken for cerci. They are no more than pores in some species.
...
, greenish-grey and dusted with wax particles. On the secondary host,
wingless
The Wnt signaling pathways are a group of signal transduction pathways which begin with proteins that pass signals into a cell through cell surface receptors. The name Wnt is a portmanteau created from the names Wingless and Int-1. Wnt signaling p ...
viviparous
Among animals, viviparity is development of the embryo inside the body of the parent. This is opposed to oviparity which is a reproductive mode in which females lay developing eggs that complete their development and hatch externally from the ...
females are greenish-grey or yellowish-grey, again dusted with fine wax particles. Winged viviparous females are greyish-red with black markings. Egg-laying females are reddish-brown and winged males are reddish with black markings.
Ecology
The hawthorn-carrot aphid migrates to its primary host in late summer and forms red, curling
galls on its leaves. The following spring, females move to its secondary host, an umbellifer in the family Apiaceae, and produce live offspring, When these nymphs are sufficiently mature, they produce further live young. Most offspring are wingless, but some winged females are produced which are able to colonize new secondary hosts. In late summer winged females and males are produced and migrate to hawthorn trees. These aphids are attended by ants on both their primary and secondary hosts.
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References
External links
{{Taxonbar, from=Q10478205
Macrosiphini
Agricultural pest insects
Gall-inducing insects
Insects described in 1843