APHIDS
If you look up aphids on the internet, many websites will tell you how to eradicate them. They are great pest to gardeners and to farmers. But if you encounter one while out walking, have a closer look. They are actually rather interesting little creatures.
The RSPB tells us :
There are over 500 aphid species in the UK, and several are common garden pests. Typically they have pear-shaped bodies and range in colour from black to pink, though most are green or brown.
Aphids secrete honeydew, which ants love. You may see ants milking (stroking) aphids to encourage this secretion.
In spring, aphid eggs hatch into wingless females that do not mate but produce live young (a process known as parthenogenesis) – some of these young have wings and fly off to other host plants. Several generations of aphid are produced during the summer and aphid populations can increase rapidly.
In autumn, males and females are born. After mating, females lay eggs that hatch in spring. Plants infested with aphids are often distorted with weak-looking leaves and shoots.
GREEN PEACH APHID : Myzus persicae.
Also known as the greenfly, or the peach-potato aphid.
Considered as economically significant pests with worldwide distribution, aphids feed on hundreds of cultivated and ornamental plants and cause considerable economic loss globally.
The peach potato aphid, Myzus persicae, is one of most severe model aphid pests that successfully colonizes hundreds of plant species from 40 different families. It is a complex aphid pest known for high reproductive rate, biotype formation, suppression of plant defense, and wide host plant range. (Routledge).
A green peach aphid on a bramble in August.
ROUTLEDGE : Scientific paper outline. https://www.routledge.com/The-Peach-Potato-Aphid-Myzus-persicae-Ecology-and-Management/Ali/p/book/9781032509297
WIKIPEDIA : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Myzus_persicae
