Aleurochiton forbesii is a whitefly species found in the eastern United States and Canada. It is a parasite of maple trees and occasionally hollies.[1]
| Aleurochiton forbesii | |
|---|---|
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| Puparium on the underside of a silver maple leaf | |
Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hemiptera |
| Suborder: | Sternorrhyncha |
| Family: | Aleyrodidae |
| Genus: | Aleurochiton |
| Species: | A. forbesii
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| Binomial name | |
| Aleurochiton forbesii (Ashmead, 1893)
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| Synonyms | |
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Synonymy
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Description
editThere are two broods of pupae each year. Puparia of the first, in the early summer, are nearly colorless; puparia of overwintering individuals, most visible in the fall on the underside of leaves, have a distinctive brown pigmented pattern. These puparia are raised on a vertical fringe of whitish wax, which varies in height as the individuals age; mature individuals can have fringes with heights nearly two-thirds that of the diameter of the puparium.[2][3]
Adults have a generally yellow body, with paler legs and antennae, and unmarked white wings with venation typical for Aleurochiton.[2]
Distribution
editAleurochiton forbesii is commonly found on silver maple, red maple, and sometimes Norway maple. It has also been reported on two holly species – Ilex coriacea and Ilex glabra.[1] Its range stretches south to Georgia and Mississippi, north to New Brunswick and Ontario, and west to Wisconsin, Illinois, and Missouri.[2][4]
Ecology
editIn the fall, puparia fall to the ground on dead leaves, yielding adult whiteflies in the spring.[3] It has not been known to become abundant enough to injure its host plants, unlike the closely related European Aleurochiton aceris.[2]
The species can be parasitized by Amitus aleurodinis, a small parasitoid wasp in the Platygastridae family.[1]
References
edit- ^ a b c Gregory A. Evans (2007-06-11). The whiteflies (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) of the world and their host plants and natural enemies (PDF) (Report). USDA/Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS). Retrieved 2023-11-16.
- ^ a b c d A. L. Quaintance; A. C. Baker (1915-02-03). Classification of the Aleyrodidae (Report). United States Department of Agriculture. Retrieved 2023-11-16.
- ^ a b Wang, Ji-Rui; Martin, Jon H.; Xu, Zhi-Hong; Du, Yu-Zhou (16 December 2016). "Aleurochiton orientalis Danzig, 1966 (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae), newly recorded from China, with a key to puparia of all described Aleurochiton species". Entomologica Fennica. 27 (4): 167, 171. doi:10.33338/ef.60260.
- ^ "Aleurochiton forbesii". iNaturalist. Retrieved 2023-11-16.
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