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Rose aphid on rose
Photograph copyright: ozwildlife - all rights reserved. Used with permission.
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Rose aphids are often seen in large colonies on rose stems.
Photograph copyright: ozwildlife - all rights reserved. Used with permission.
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ROSE APHID FACTS |
Identification
Rose aphids are a pinkish brown colour. Wingless females are often seen in large number on stems and buds of roses. Aphids are soft-bodied with sucking mouthparts. They have a pair of tubes on the abdomen which secrete a waxy fluid. When they start to get overcrowded or run out of food, females produce winged young which fly away to find new food sources.
Size
4mm
Habitat
Rose plants
Food
sap from rose stems. They prefer the soft growing tips of the rose.
Breeding
Eggs hatch in spring, and all the young are female aphids. These females can reproduce within a few days without any male involvement (a process called parthenogenesis). Populations rapidly increase as this process is repeated generation after generation through the summer. In autumn, winged males are born, and they mate with females. The female lays eggs which lie dormant until spring when the cycle starts again
Classification
| Class: | Insecta | | Order: | Hemiptera | | Family: | Aphididae | | Genus: | Macrosiphum | | Species: | rosae | | Common Name: | Rose Aphid |
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