**Taxonomy:**
– The black bean aphid is classified as Aphis fabae in the superfamily Aphidoidea and the subgenus Aphis.
– Some taxonomists consider it a group of related species or biotypes.
– Fauna Europaea lists six subspecies: A. f. cirsiiacanthoidis, A. f. eryngii, A. f. evonymi, A. f. fabae, A. f. mordvilkoi, A. f. solanella.
**Description:**
– The black bean aphid is a small, soft-bodied insect with specialized mouthparts for piercing and sucking.
– It measures about two millimeters in length and has a small head and bulbous abdomen.
– Winged forms, known as alates, have shiny black heads and thoraxes, with pale yellow antennae and legs with black tips.
– It possesses cornicles or siphunculi at the rear of the abdomen.
**Life Cycle:**
– The black bean aphid undergoes both sexual and asexual generations in its life cycle.
– It alternates hosts throughout the year, with wingless stem mothers reproducing asexually in the spring.
– Parthenogenetic females can produce up to 30 offspring during their 50-day lifespan.
– Winged forms migrate to secondary host plants for further reproduction.
**Damage:**
– The black bean aphid is a significant pest of sugar beet, beans, and celery crops.
– It causes stunting, flower and pod damage, and transmission of harmful viruses.
– Sugar beet leaves exhibit swelling, rolling, and arrested development.
– Aphid saliva impacts plant growth and flower development, while honeydew promotes sooty molds and virus spread.
**Ecology:**
– Natural predators of the black bean aphid include ladybirds, lacewings, and hoverflies.
– Some parasitic wasps lay eggs inside aphids for control purposes.
– Ants feed on aphid honeydew and protect them from predators, with black garden ants even removing ladybird predators.
– Certain wasp genera like Diaeretiella and Lysiphlebus provide control by laying eggs inside aphids.
– The black bean aphid is widely distributed in temperate regions worldwide and is known to be migratory.
The black bean aphid (Aphis fabae) is a small black insect in the genus Aphis, with a broad, soft body, a member of the order Hemiptera. Other common names include blackfly, bean aphid, and beet leaf aphid. In the warmer months of the year, it is found in large numbers on the undersides of leaves and on the growing tips of host plants, including various agricultural crops and many wild and ornamental plants. Both winged and wingless forms exist, and at this time of year, they are all females. They suck sap from stems and leaves and cause distortion of the shoots, stunted plants, reduced yield, and spoiled crops. This aphid also acts as a vector for viruses that cause plant disease, and the honeydew it secretes may encourage the growth of sooty mould. It breeds profusely by live birth, but its numbers are kept in check, especially in the later part of the summer, by various predatory and parasitic insects. Ants feed on the honeydew it produces, and take active steps to remove predators. It is a widely distributed pest of agricultural crops and can be controlled by chemical or biological means. In the autumn, winged forms move to different host plants, where both males and females are produced. These mate and the females lay eggs which overwinter.
| Aphis fabae | |
|---|---|
| |
| Two wingless adults and a nymph | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hemiptera |
| Suborder: | Sternorrhyncha |
| Family: | Aphididae |
| Genus: | Aphis |
| Species: | A. fabae
|
| Binomial name | |
| Aphis fabae | |