Aphids
1. One host plant life cycles (Example: sycamore aphid)
Eggs overwinter--first summer generation winged (fundatrices)-
Parthenogenetic fundatrices lay eggs for first generation of wingless
parthenogenetic summer aphids--can be several parthenogenetic wingless
generations--in fall alate males are produced, which mate with wingless
females, and overwintering eggs are produced.
2. Two host plant life cycles (Example: bird cherry-oat aphid)
Eggs overwinter and hatch on cherries--first summer generation
winged, parthenogenetic--second and third summer generations contain
winged individuals which migrate to grasses--several generations on
grasses-alate males and females appear on grasses in fall--alate
females migrate to cherries, produce a wingless generation which
mates with males--eggs overwinter
Reference: Dixon, A. F. G. 1973. The biology of aphids. Edward Arnold: London.
3. Aphid soldiers
In some aphid species a curious outcome of living in clones
(parthenogenetic offspring of a single mother) is that some of the
aphids become soldiers. They are stouter bodied and capable of
defending the clone from attack. Aphid soldiers have evolved a
number of times in the Hormaphididae and Pemphigidae.
Reference: Stern, D. L. 1994. A phylogenetic analysis of soldier
evolution in the aphid family Hormaphididae. Proc. R. Soc. Lond. B. 256:203-209.
Revised from a page on Life Histories.
Click the Back button to return to the lesson.