Sarucallis Explained

Sarucallis, also known by its common name as the Crape myrtle aphid or Kirkaldy, is a genus of aphids in the family Aphididae. There is one described species in the genus Sarucallis and it is Sarucallis kahawaluokalanu (S. kahawaluokalani). They can grow to a body length of 1.2 to 1.8 millimeters.^[1]

Distribution

They can be found in North America (both Western North America, Eastern North America and Hawaii) but they are native in Asia (Japan, China, South Korea and Central Asia). They also live in areas like Southern South America and the Caribbean islands.

Ecology

They are a terrestrial genus.^[2]

Predators

Two of their predators are the Yellow pecan aphid (Monelliopsis pecanis) and the blackmargined aphid (Monellia caryella). Other predatory animal groups that feed on S. kahwaluokalanu are Coccinellidae (ladybugs), Syrphidae (Hover flies), Chrysopidae (Green lace wings), and Anthocoridae.^[3]

Further reading

• Adventive aphids (Hemiptera: Aphididae) of America north of Mexico. 2006. Foottit . R. G.. Halbert . S. E.. Miller . G. L.. Maw . E.. Russell . L. M.. 4. Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington. 108. 3. 583–610. 0013-8797.
• An Update to the Adventive Aphids (Hemiptera: Aphidoidea) of America North of Mexico, with Notes on Intercepted Species. 2017. Skvarla . Michael J.. Halbert . Susan E.. Foottit . Robert G.. Jensen . Andrew S.. Maw . Eric. Miller . Gary L.. 4. Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington. 119. 1. 90–111. 10.4289/0013-8797.119.1.90.

Notes and References

1. Web site: Sarucallis kahawaluokalani (Crape myrtle aphid) identification, images, ecology, control . 2023-11-18 . influentialpoints.com.
2. Web site: species Sarucallis kahawaluokalani (Kirkaldy, 1907): Aphid Species File . 2023-11-18 . aphid.archive.speciesfile.org.
3. Mizell . R. F. . Schiffhauer . D. E. . 1987-10-01 . Seasonal abundance of the crapemyrtle aphid, Sarucallis kahawaluokalani, in relation to the pecan aphids, Monellia caryella and Monelliopsis pecanis and their common predators . Entomophaga . en . 32 . 5 . 511–520 . 10.1007/BF02373520 . 1573-8248.