City - Cluj-Napoca State - TRANSYLVANIA Country - Romania
About
Aphids, also known as greenfly, blackfly or plant lice, are minute plant-feeding insects in the superfamily Aphidoidea in the homopterous division of the order Hemiptera. About 4,000 species of aphids are known, classified in 10 families; of these, around 250 species are serious pests for agriculture and forestry as well as an annoyance for gardeners. They vary in size from 1-10 mm long. Many, but far from all, aphids are monophagous (i.e. feeding only on 1 species of plant). Others, feed on hundreds of plant species across many families. Some species of ants "farm" aphids, protecting them on the plant they eat, and eating the honeydew that the aphids secrete; this is a mutualistic relationship. Aphid honeydew is rich in carbohydrates, of which the aphids ingest an excess, being phloem-feeders.
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