Archive:Poplar/Spotted Poplar Aphid
From Bugwoodwiki
From: Ostry, Michael E.; Wilson, Louis F.; McNabb, Harold S., Jr.; Moore, Lincoln M. 1988. A guide to insect, disease, and animal pests of poplars. Agric. Handb. 677. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Agriculture. 118 p.
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Importance
Nymphs and adults feed on the newly developing terminal shoots of nursery stock and young plantation trees. Heavily infested leaves curl; some turn black and drop off. Feeding may cause a small amount of height-growth loss.
Look For:
• Dense colonies of perhaps thousands of blue-black spotted aphids on shoot tips in late July to leaf fall.
• Distorted, curled, or dead leaves on terminals.
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| Injury of shoot caused by spotted poplar aphids. |
Biology
Migrants move onto Populus terminals in the spring and feed and reproduce. Large colonies form, which may exceed 2,500 individuals by late summer. The aphids generally move to dogwood trees to overwinter.
Monitoring
Inspect whips in nurseries and outplanted trees for the first 2 to 3 years. Examine 50 to 100 terminal shoots and treat infested areas if more than 50 percent of terminals are infested. If lady bird beetles or other native predators are abundant, do not control. This insect may need to be monitored by specific clone because clones differ widely in susceptibility to attack. Clones of Populus x jackii are especially susceptible.
Control
• Plant aphid-resistant trees.
• Avoid planting near dogwood trees.
• Spray infected terminals with an insecticidal soap or an contact insecticide recommended for sucking insects. Do not spray insecticides if predators are feeding on aphids.
For Additional Information:
Wilson, L.F.; Moore, L.M. 1986. Preference for some nursery-grown hybrid Populus trees by the spotted poplar aphid and its suppression by insecticidal soaps (Homoptera: Aphididae). The Great Lakes Entomologist, 19: 21-26.
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| Aphids feeding on stem. |
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| Aphids feeding on leaf. |
