Hello Explorer!

Winter officially starts in the Southern Hemisphere today and though most insects are now either hibernating, brumating or in diapause, there are those who thrive in these conditions.

Aphids, for one, never really go away and they might seem to be much worse in Winter and early Spring, than they are ever in Summer. The reason for this is that there are less active predators and parasites that are feasting on the aphids. The aphids have also adapted to feed off of different host plants during Winter and Summer.

During summer, aphids have a faster developmental rate, enabling them to have multiple generations. While in Winter the developmental rate is slowed down greatly, due to the lower temperatures, leading to only one winter generation.

Aphids have two different adult states, winged and wingless. Winged adults are both male and female, and they reproduce sexually. Winged adults also known as migrants (as they fly to new host plants) can be seen during Summer and Autumn. Whereas, the wingless form are only females and they reproduce parthenogenically or asexually. The wingless form can be observed year round.

The fact that aphids are active all year round is one of the primary factors why ants farm them as a continuous carbohydrate food source.

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