Aphis lugentis

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Aphis lugentis
Aptera of Aphis lugentis
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hemiptera
Suborder: Sternorrhyncha
Family: Aphididae
Genus: Aphis
Species:
A. lugentis
Binomial name
Aphis lugentis
Williams, 1911
Synonyms

Aphis nyctalis Palmer, 1952

Aphis lugentis, sometimes referred to colloquially as the American ragwort aphid,[1] is a true bug in the aphid family,[2] which feeds exclusively on members of the Senecioneae.[2] It can be found naturally throughout most of the United States, except for the Northeast, and has recently been introduced globally.[1][3]

Description

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Aptera can range in colour from dark yellow-brown, to dark olive or matte black.[2] They are relatively large aphids, with apteral body length between 1.9 and 2.8 millimeters. They can be found in dense, aggregated clusters of 50-200 individuals on their host plants[4], as opposed to less gregarious species such as the sycamore aphid.[5]

Aphis lugentis belongs to the 'fabae' clade within the subgenus Aphis, which contains dark-coloured aphids with very similar morphology.[6][7] Aphis lugentis can be distinguished from its sister species by its uniformly black appendages (Aphis fabae has light-coloured tibiae),[2] large body length in aptera (Aphis senecionis, has a body length of 1.7-1.9mm),[2] as well as its oligophagous diet (Aphis jacobaeae has a specific host preference for Jacobaea vulgaris syn. Senecio jacobaea).[2]

A. lugentis was nominally described from specimens collected on Senecio lugens.[8] This is not actually the type host for A. lugentis. Instead, Senecio integerrimus var. integerrimus was identified as the plant misidentified by Williams as Senecio lugens.[9]

Range

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Natural global range

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Aphis lugentis naturally occurs throughout the United States, except for the American Northeast where it has been introduced.[2][3] Within North America, A. lugentis distribution has a southern limit in northern Mexico[10] and a northern limit in Canada.[3]

New Zealand range

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Aphis lugentis occurs predominantly around the port cities of Auckland and Christchurch, with a northern limit of distribution in Northland[1] and a southern limit in Christchurch.[11] It is likely that A. lugentis has been introduced on ornamental Senecio species[3] as well as agricultural produce.[12] Additionally, alate forms of A. lugentis can potentially disperse by wind currents from Australia[13]or from further abroad.[14]

Habitat

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Because of its inability to survive away from its host plants,[15] Aphis lugentis has a habitat preference for areas where Senecio, Erigeron, or Packera species grow prolifically. In the case of Northland sightings of A. lugentis on S. madagascariensis, this is often disturbed habitat such as roadsides and pasture.[1] In Australia, observations of A. lugentis on Senecio odoratus were made in a frequently disturbed area on sandy soil.[16]

Ecology

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Life cycle/phenology

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Alata of A. lugentis

Aphis lugentis is monoecious,[10] meaning it depends on a single or a limited range of host plant taxa throughout its life cycle, rather than overwintering on a second host family (as opposed to the heteroecious life cycle of A. fabae).[15] For A. lugentis, this host could be a range of species in the tribe Senecioneae.[3] Aphis lugentis is also holocyclic,[10] meaning it produces sexual females (oviparae) and eggs each year.[15] Winged forms (alate virginoparae)[15] of A. lugentis that have landed on a suitable host will give birth to wingless females (apterous virginoparae).[15] These 'aptera' reproduce asexually via a process known as parthenogenesis – essentially, a female aptera will give birth to a clone which will already be pregnant with itself, akin to a matryoshka doll.[15] This is referred to as "telescoping generations" and can lead to the rapid colonization of the initial host plant.[15] During Autumn, when herbaceous growth begins to dwindle, the apterous females begin to birth winged females and males (alatae) that are capable of sexual reproduction (gynoparae).[15] The rendezvous between sexual aphids produces eggs which are capable of overwintering on either a primary or secondary host.[15] Alate males and oviparae of A. lugentis can be found in October in the Northern Hemisphere.[2]

Diet and foraging

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Senecio vulgaris - an example of one of the plants A. lugentis typically feeds on.

A. lugentis use their piercing-sucking mouthparts to feed on sugar-rich phloem from stem, leaves, as well as roots of plants in the Senecioneae tribe of Asteraceae, namely Senecio, Erigeron, and Packera species.[3] When busy feeding, A. lugentis is usually attended by ants.[17][16] Vrieling et al. (1991) showed that ants tending to the closely related Aphis jacobaeae would aggressively purge Tyria jacobaeae larvae if detected, therefore freeing up more real estate for A. jacobaeae to feed.[18] The same paper revealed that high pyrrolizidine alkaloid concentration (specifically jacoline and jaconine) in Jacobaea vulgaris deterred A. jacobaeae from feeding. It is likely that pyrrolizidine alkaloids within Senecioneae, such as senecionine and seneciphyllin, may have a similar deterrent effect on A. lugentis,[19] but no experiments have been conducted on this specific species.

Predators, parasites, and diseases

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Aphis lugentis is predated by ladybugs and hoverfly larvae.[4] It is likely that A. lugentis is also predated by lacewings, insectivorous birds such as dunnocks,[15] as well as parasitized by braconid and chalcid wasps.[20][12] Additionally, species of Entomophthoraceae (specifically, Entomophthora aphidis syn. Zootophthora aphidis) can potentially infect A. lugentis in years with sufficient conditions.[15]

Endosymbionts

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Aphis lugentis belongs to the Aphididae – species in this family associate with the obligate endosymbiont Buchnera aphidicola. B. aphidicola has a role in the synthesis of tryptophan, which aphids cannot produce on their own.[21] Additionally, the facultative endosymbiont Regiella insecticola, has been found in A. lugentis.[22] Regiella insecticola has a role in blocking plant viruses as well as entomopathogenic fungi, conferring protective benefits to aphids.[21]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d Dymock, J.J.; Winks, C.J. (2024). "Invertebrate and fungal associations of the pastoral weed, Madagascar ragwort, Senecio madagascariensis Poir, in Northland, New Zealand, and implications for biocontrol". New Zealand Journal of Agricultural Research. 68 (7): 1799–1808. doi:10.1080/00288233.2024.2435402. ISSN 0028-8233.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Blackman, R.L.; Eastop, V.F. (2006). Aphids on the World's Herbaceous Plants and Shrubs. Chichester, England: John Wiley & Sons.
  3. ^ a b c d e f Ortego, J.; Ayadi, M.; Kamel, M.B.H.; Juteau, V.; Marullo-Masson, D.; Nafría, J.M.N.; Kadhi, M.S.B.; Favret, C. (2019). "The Spread of the North American Aphis lugentis Williams (Hemiptera: Aphididae) to Africa and South America". Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington. 121 (1): 128. doi:10.4289/0013-8797.121.1.128. ISSN 0013-8797.
  4. ^ a b Hudgens, B.R. (2007). "Quantifying spatial correlations in extinction risk for an aphid metapopulation". Population Ecology. 49 (1): 63–73. Bibcode:2007PopEc..49...63H. doi:10.1007/s10144-006-0017-1. ISSN 1438-390X.
  5. ^ Kennedy, J. S.; Crawley, L.; McLaren, A. D. (1967). "Spaced-Out Gregariousness in Sycamore Aphids Drepanosiphum platanoides (Schrank) (Hemiptera, Callaphididae): With a Statistical Appendix". Journal of Animal Ecology. 36 (1): 147–170. Bibcode:1967JAnEc..36..147K. doi:10.2307/3019. ISSN 0021-8790. JSTOR 3019.
  6. ^ Lagos, D.M.; Voegtlin, D.J.; Coeur d'acier, A.; Giordano, R. (2014). "Aphis (Hemiptera: Aphididae) species groups found in the Midwestern United States and their contribution to the phylogenetic knowledge of the genus". Insect Science. 21 (3): 374–391. Bibcode:2014InsSc..21..374L. doi:10.1111/1744-7917.12089. ISSN 1744-7917. PMID 24302699.
  7. ^ Coeur d’acier, A.; Jousselin, E.; Martin, J. -F.; Rasplus, J. -Y. (2007). "Phylogeny of the Genus Aphis Linnaeus, 1758 (Homoptera: Aphididae) inferred from mitochondrial DNA sequences". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 42 (3): 598–611. Bibcode:2007MolPE..42..598C. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2006.10.006. ISSN 1055-7903. PMID 17113793.
  8. ^ Williams, T.A. (1910). The Aphididae of Nebraska. Lincoln.
  9. ^ Cook, E.F. (1984). "Aphis (Homoptera: Aphididae) Recorded from Compositae in North America, with a Key to the Species East of the Rocky Mountains and Comments on Synonymy and Redescriptions of Some Little Known Forms". Annals of the Entomological Society of America. 77 (4): 442–449. doi:10.1093/aesa/77.4.442. ISSN 0013-8746.
  10. ^ a b c Palmer, M.A. (1952). Aphids of the Rocky Mountain region, including primarily Colorado and Utah, but also a bordering area composed of southern Wyoming, southeastern Idaho and northern New Mexico. Denver: Hirschfield Press.
  11. ^ "Aphis lugentis Williams, 1911". Global Biodiversity Information Facility. Retrieved 2025-03-26.
  12. ^ a b Teulon, D.J.; Stufkens, M.W. (2002). "Biosecurity and aphids in New Zealand". New Zealand Plant Protection. 55: 12–17. doi:10.30843/nzpp.2002.55.3906. ISSN 1179-352X.
  13. ^ Close, R.C.; Tomlinson, A.I. (1975). "Dispersal of the Grain Aphid Macrosiphum miscanthi from Australia to New Zealand". New Zealand Entomologist. 6 (1): 62–65. Bibcode:1975NZEnt...6...62C. doi:10.1080/00779962.1975.9723102. ISSN 0077-9962.
  14. ^ Lowe, A.D. (1973). "Aphid Biology in New Zealand". Entomological Society of New Zealand. Bulletin. 2: 7–19 – via Auckland Museum.
  15. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Blackman, R.L. (1974). Aphids (invertebrate types). London, England: Ginn & Company. ISBN 9780602216672.
  16. ^ a b Petit, S; Weyland, J.J.; Brumley, C.; Kehoe, M.A.; Wang, C. (2021). "First record of Aphis lugentis in Australia, tended by native ants on Senecio odoratus". Austral Ecology. 47 (1): 137–141. doi:10.1111/aec.13056 – via Wiley Online Library.
  17. ^ Smith, K.G. (1982). "On Habitat Selection of Williamson's and "Red-Naped" Yellow-Bellied Sapsuckers". The Southwestern Naturalist. 27 (4): 464–466. Bibcode:1982SWNat..27..464S. doi:10.2307/3670725. ISSN 0038-4909. JSTOR 3670725.
  18. ^ Vrieling, K.; Smit, W.; van der Meijden, E. (1991). "Tritrophic interactions between aphids (Aphis jacobaeae Schrank), ant species, Tyria jacobaeae L., and Senecio jacobaea L. lead to maintenance of genetic variation in pyrrolizidine alkaloid concentration". Oecologia. 86 (2): 177–182. Bibcode:1991Oecol..86..177V. doi:10.1007/BF00317529. ISSN 1432-1939. PMID 28313199.
  19. ^ Dreyer, D.L.; Jones, K.C.; Molyneux, R.J. (1985). "Feeding deterrency of some pyrrolizidine, indolizidine, and quinolizidine alkaloids towards pea aphid (Acyrthosiphon pisum) and evidence for phloem transport of indolizidine alkaloid swainsonine". Journal of Chemical Ecology. 11 (8): 1045–1051. Bibcode:1985JCEco..11.1045D. doi:10.1007/BF01020674. ISSN 1573-1561. PMID 24310329.
  20. ^ Cameron, P.J.; Hill, R.L.; Teulon, D.A.J.; Stufkens, M.A.W.; Connolly, P.G.; Walker, G.P. (2013). "A retrospective evaluation of the host range of four Aphidius species introduced to New Zealand for the biological control of pest aphids". Biological Control. 67 (2): 275–283. Bibcode:2013BiolC..67..275C. doi:10.1016/j.biocontrol.2013.08.011. ISSN 1049-9644.
  21. ^ a b Higashi, C.H.V.; Nichols, W.L.; Chevignon, G.; Patel, V.; Allison, S.E.; Kim, K.L; Strand, M.R.; Oliver, K.M. (2023). "An aphid symbiont confers protection against a specialized RNA virus, another increases vulnerability to the same pathogen". Molecular Ecology. 32 (4): 936–950. Bibcode:2023MolEc..32..936H. doi:10.1111/mec.16801. ISSN 1365-294X. PMC 10107813. PMID 36458425.
  22. ^ Yang, Q.; Gill, A.; Robinson, K.L.; Umina, P.A.; Ross, P.A.; Zhan, D.; Brown, C.; Bell, N.; MacMahon, A.; Hoffmann, A.A. (2023). "A diversity of endosymbionts across Australian aphids and their persistence in aphid cultures". Environmental Microbiology. 25 (10): 1988–2001. Bibcode:2023EnvMi..25.1988Y. doi:10.1111/1462-2920.16432. ISSN 1462-2920. PMID 37286189.