What’s This Bug? The Wooly Aphid.

If you see drifting bits of white fuzz in your garden, you might not pay much attention to them, or you might discount them as pollen, lint, or even little fairies. But you may want to pay a little closer attention because they could be Wooly Aphids (Mult spp) hidden as innocuous debris.

The distinctive white fuzziness of these insects isn’t hair or fur – it’s the result of waxy strands that they secrete that create the wooly effect. It is believed that this wool is meant to protect them and deter predators. Underneath all that adornment they are small (about ¼” diameter), pale green to purplish-brown aphids. When they cluster together, they look more like a fungal growth than individual insects. If you see a white mass and are unsure of what it is, give the area a little shake – if it’s aphids, they’ll move. In fact, there is one species that does a dance when they feel threatened; they raise their rear ends and wiggle them. See them do their thing in this video, it’s pretty entertaining.

Wooly Aphids, like all aphids, are one of the first insects to get moving in earnest in the spring. And,
like virtually every other creature in spring, they have a specific reproductive agenda at hand. Wooly aphids use two host trees/plants in their life cycle. They choose one to overwinter and lay eggs in, but when spring comes they move to another to establish a breeding colony. The nymphs that appear in spring are crawlers, but by late spring they will be a full-blown white fuzzy mass on spurs and branches. Throughout the summer, subsequent generations take flight to find their own spots and, as winter approaches, all the Wooly Aphids go in search of their winter homes. This is often when people first notice them.

Many people consider Wooly Aphids to be less of a threat to crops than other types of aphids. There are two reasons for this: Their numbers are generally not large enough to cause extensive crop damage and many of their species are adapted to live off of trees. Wooly Aphids are not considered tree-killers, and rarely even harm a tree’s overall health. They do, however, cause unsightly leaf curling and galls.  If you’re worried about your trees, this article has some great pictures that show what to look for.

The biggest concern in regards to Wooly Aphids is Sooty Mold. This particular plant mold is caused by an accumulation of honeydew, the sticky-sweet excrement of aphids. When aphids gather in large numbers, the honeydew can really build up creating the perfect growing environment for mold. Sooty Mold seldom kills a plant outright, but it can weaken it to the point where the insects causing the honeydew can do real damage. And then there is the ant angle – where there is honeydew there will be ants. They love the stuff and will protect and farm the aphids to get their honeydew (here is a cool super-closeup

video that shows them milking the aphids). Ants are notorious vectors for some serious plant diseases, so their presence on any plant or tree is definitely undesirable. Too much honeydew is not only a problem for plants, it can drip onto surfaces and is a real pain to get off cars.

If you are not charmed by the fluff-balls that are Wooly Aphids, ARBICO Organic has a multitude of weapons you can deploy against them. We have everything from insects that prey on aphids, to sticky traps, to a large variety of organic and natural insecticides. Our Aphid Control page is the best first stop on your search for a solution to your aphid problem.

Take Care.

Submitted by Pam

 

What’s This Bug? The Crane Fly.

Here in Tucson, we are in the middle of Crane Fly season and it's creeping people out all over the city. These gangly insects are everywhere – and I mean everywhere; I even found a dead one in my purse. This phenomenon happens every year, but the numbers are greater when the area experiences wet weather late in the previous year. This was the case for our city in late 2019 and into early 2020. Crane Fly larvae grows best in damp soil and the accumulated rain triggered growth in wildflowers and grasses, which provided a stable food source for the root-eating larvae. With all that organic matter to feast on, the larvae population grew and thrived. Which leads us to this moment, when large numbers of adults have grown from that larvae and are now out looking for mates.

People around here have to run a gauntlet of  these quivering critters to get through their front doors. Like many other insects, Crane Flies are attracted to light; so avoiding these clusters can be tricky. You can turn off the light by your door, but they will still see the light leaking out from inside. So, unless you turn all your lights off, you will probably just have to deal with them and wait them out - they will only be around a couple of weeks.


Crane Flies must be one of the most wrongly identified insects out there. They are most commonly mistaken for mosquitoes, and for many people they spark a sort of primal fear of that particular insect. But, Crane Flies are not mutant mosquitoes plotting to suck you dry of blood. They are not mosquitoes at all or even closely related –they are members of the fly family (Tipulidae spp.) and only share a passing resemblance to mosquitoes.

It is not only misidentification that plagues Crane Flies, but widespread misunderstanding of their capabilities and motivations in life. Hence the Mosquito-eating monikers like “Mosquito Hawk”. Crane Flies do not, despite the deepest desires of some people, eat mosquitoes. In fact, they do not have the mouth parts to eat anything (or bite – more on that in a minute). Some have a visible proboscis, which some scientists say they use to suck up flower nectar. Other scientists dispute this feeding claim and believe they do not eat at all as adults and survive by living off the fat stores accumulated in their larval stage. Lending credence to the not-eating, energy-conserving hypothesis is their activity level; they don’t fly around endlessly. They sort of bump-jump-fly and then find a spot to cling to.

Because they do not have the proper mouth parts or stingers, Crane Flies are harmless to people. They cannot (so will not) bite, sting or suck on people. For all these reasons, they also do not carry diseases. Their Daddy-Long-Legs-combined-with-mosquito looks and their twitchy movements may give you the willies, but they pose no danger.

While adult Crane Flies are completely harmless, the same cannot necessarily be said for their voracious larval form (which is 95% of their lives). Crane Fly larvae are great decomposers; they consume all sorts of organic material in the soil. However, they will not discriminate between unwanted organic matter and desirable plant roots. So, for those in search of the perfect lawn, they can be seen as a problem. Keeping your lawn healthy will discourage excessive feeding (check out our lawn products here) and treating the area with beneficial nematodes (we recommend NemAttack™ Steinernema feltiae) should keep their numbers down. For more on controlling Crane Fly larvae, read this article.

If you are still convinced that the current Crane Fly situation in Tucson is horrific, consider what it must be like in the Sichuan province of China. Back in 2017, outside the city of Chengdu, a monster-sized Crane Fly was captured. It has since been confirmed to be the world’s largest.

There are some people who see Crane Flies as deeply spiritual beings and their appearance as a blessing. This site gives more details on this unique vision of a unique creature.

Here's a video for more general information on Crane Flies.

Adult Crane Flies may be aesthetically challenged, but they serve a purpose beyond their own reproduction. They are a bounty to insect-loving animals in our environment. Birds, bats, lizards and other wildlife are currently having their own version of Thanksgiving over-eating. I can envision them in their homes, contentedly sleeping off their feast – just like Uncle Fred on the couch after too much turkey.                                                     

Submitted by Pam