Giant oak aphids

Description:

Identification: Apterae are shining blackish brown with a body length of 2.5-5.5 mm. Siphuncular cones are large and dark. Dorsum has only a few short hairs. Alatae have forewing membrane pigmented except for four clear patches. Antennae are quite short - for apterae 0.4-0.5 times the body length. Found on twigs and small branches of oak (Quercus sp.) and sometimes sweet chestnut (Castanea sativa). Present in Europe, the Mediterranean region and parts of the Middle East. Do not host alternate. Apterous oviparae and large alate males occur in September-October and produce eggs which overwinter ( http://influentialpoints.com/Gallery/Lac... )

Habitat:

The fertilized female then lays the reddish brown eggs which darken over time. Blazhievskaya (1980) reports that the eggs are subject to attack by predators, particularly the coccinellid Adalia bipunctata. Out of 6281 eggs examined in autumn, 25% were destroyed by birds and coccinellids and 19% by fungal infections, while 56% appeared normal. However, only 30% actually hatched. We have also noted high rates of mortality of overwintering eggs

Notes:

----Aphids, also known as plant lice and in Britain and the Commonwealth as greenflies, blackflies or whiteflies, (not to be confused with "jumping plant lice" or true whiteflies) are small sap sucking insects, and members of the superfamily Aphidoidea. Aphids are among the most destructive insect pests on cultivated plants in temperate regions. The damage they do to plants has made them enemies of farmers and gardeners the world over, but from a zoological standpoint they are a very successful group of organisms. Their success is in part due to the asexual reproduction capability of some species. ------About 4,400 species of 10 families are known. Historically, many fewer families were recognised, as most species were included in the family Aphididae. Around 250 species are serious pests for agriculture and forestry as well as an annoyance for gardeners. They vary in length from 1 to 10 millimetres (0.04 to 0.39 in). -----Natural enemies include predatory ladybirds, hoverfly larvae, parasitic wasps, aphid midge larvae, crab spiders, lacewings and entomopathogenic fungi like Lecanicillium lecanii and the Entomophthorales ( http://www.soortenbank.nl/soorten.php?so... )