Tiny white fuzzy bugs

Discussion in 'HortForum' started by texasvanessa, Jul 20, 2004.

  1. laurennicole7

    laurennicole7 Member

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    Yup, I think it just might have been a Woolly aphid, although I didn't notice any wings (I was pretty close), that is the best guess I have seen so far. It definitely was not a mealy bug..

    :)
     
  2. Paint Mirage

    Paint Mirage Member

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    North Carolina, Raleigh
    I noticed some of them when I went on my camping trip, I think they could be related to flies because I left the car open and a lot of flies, along with the little things were everywhere. And they seemed to like artificial objects because they attacked our tents and any plastic objects we had, I would find them all over my shirt and car, my friend also found some in my hair. Also, I noticed that a bunch of them lived on a plastic picnic table that was set up nearby.

    On the picnic table there weren't just little fuzzy bugs, there were slightly bigger bugs that looked somewhat like scorpions, they had three legs near the front of their body, they were black with one big orange stripe on their back, and they also had fuzzy spikes on their backs. I thought that they may have been full grown versions of the small white bugs but I had doubts because they didn't have wings and their legs were just so close to their heads. I have never actually seen any bugs eat other bugs before, but I saw that the black bugs would hide on the sides of the table, and whenever a white bug would come by they would run out, swipe them up with their fangs, and eat them. I actually saw one point in time where one of the black bugs was eating one of the fuzzy bugs and all of the other little fuzz balls ran out and attacked it, sometimes the small bugs would stick to the big bugs like Velcro (probably due to the fact that the big bugs were covered in fuzzy spikes, while the small white bugs had fuzzy cotton-like backs). The black bugs would try to shake them off but they just held on.

    A few other predators were seen around the nest, there was a daddy long legs that had made a big web covered with the little guys, and the place was also surrounded by grasshoppers (or crickets), even though they're known to be more of herbivores, it's still odd. There was a big problem with mosquitoes; I found that some of them would hang out wherever those little white bugs were at.

    If someone knows anything about any predator/prey relationships similar to this it may help to answer the question. Oh, and just to clarify, the black bugs with orange stripes weren't stink bugs.

    Because I'm in a rush, I'm not sure that I used the best grammar/spelling, so I’m sorry about any mistakes or miscommunications.
     
  3. alanmercieca

    alanmercieca Member

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  4. JoeA1010

    JoeA1010 Member

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    I live in Spokane like the guy who posted a couple of years ago. We just started getting these again today. The last two years it was closer to mid-October when the weather had turned, but it's 70-some degrees today. We get them more where there are trees and the things are just everywhere. I still don't know how to deal with them.
     
  5. alanmercieca

    alanmercieca Member

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    First you need to find out what kind of woolly aphids's they are (woolly alder aphids have clear wings and they bite whoever gets too close to or disturbs the trees that they are eating) you can tell which kind of woolly aphids they are be identifying what kind of tree(s) they are eating. Then you'd see online or in a proper book what kind of trees that type of woolly aphid prefers and you'd need to either cut all those trees down on your property or remove all their leaves. If your neighbors have those trees they will still be around just in much smaller numbers. They seem to not be a pest when you stay away from their food so remove their food source

    PS the type of trees that woolly alder aphids prefer (on our property) they grow back from any roots left in the ground from the trees so just keep pulling the new trees as they come up (if you have that problem)

     
  6. JoeA1010

    JoeA1010 Member

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    Thank you. I am not only not an expert in trees, I really don't have the slightest idea. I will find out what type of trees the three are where they seem to reside. They don't bite or anything, they just are kind of everywhere and you find them all over yourself when you go inside.
     
  7. alanmercieca

    alanmercieca Member

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    I have heard that lady bugs love to eat woolly aphids and now I just read this "Ignore the aphids if you can. Several types of insect predators exist in nature to eat aphids. These include ladybugs, lacewings, preying mantis and others. A small wasp will also parasitize the aphids by laying an egg in them.
    The attacked aphid becomes larger and turns brown as it dies. Eventually, the immature wasp inside bores a small hole and escapes, leaving an aphid mummy. Look for these parasitized aphids when determining if you need to control the aphids.


    Read more: http://www.macon.com/2010/09/15/1263444/how-to-kill-bad-bugs-and-protect.html#ixzz10yLBLvtk"

    Is it possible to buy ladybugs?
     
  8. alanmercieca

    alanmercieca Member

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    I was just reading that ants like to protect Woolly Aphids because Woolly Aphids help to feed ants with the sap that the aphids release from the trees so if all ants that are near the woolly aphids were killed the Woolly Aphids would not be as safe from predators. Here is a list of several Woolly Aphids that I have found out about

    Woolly Alder Aphid silver maple, alder

    Woolly Hemloc Aphid aka hemlock-woolly-adelgid

    Woolly apple aphid Elm, apple, crabapple

    Woolly elm aphid Elm, amelanchier, Saskatoon

    conifer woolly aphids

    Woolly beech aphids
    http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_zXKbTJ2-A...Bqk/ZCpnlZlDRhE/s1600/Woolly+beech+aphids.jpg
     
  9. Daniel A

    Daniel A Member

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    My tree has small white bugs. They seem to be sucking the leaves dry. They coat the ground and cars with a sappy substance. The whole neighborhood has the same issue. Can anyone tell me how to get rid of these?

    07212011212.jpg

    07212011211.jpg
     
  10. alanmercieca

    alanmercieca Member

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    Daniel A - we may have found a solution that works because this year we have way less of them. Marigolds and Nasturtiums repel Aphids and if you plant both kinds of flowers you should see a major reduction in these pests. A full dose of Neem should work as well
     
  11. saltcedar

    saltcedar Rising Contributor 10 Years

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  12. innis

    innis Member

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    they r flying all over the place in my back yard and neighbors yards - i never seen them before - i went walking into them thinking it was - its these fuzzy bugs - gross lol - and i m in NB, Canada
     
  13. MsCece2049

    MsCece2049 Member

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    These particular bugs are called Cochineal Bug. You can find a video on you-tube. I am having to see a doc due to this particular stung me and now I have large lump on my left elbow. Imagine that I woke up this morning in discomfort whenever I move my arm. Hope this help.
     
  14. justasnice

    justasnice Member

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    We have them in Northern New York. I have never seen these bugs before. Maybe the tropical storms have pushed them North.


     
  15. AnnieD353

    AnnieD353 New Member

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    Hello all you happy people living in sunshine. I live in Ireland where no fuzzy white aphid could survive our current cold weather. But I love the images - I have a cancerous tumour and I've been googling for an image of something fubsy and greedy which I can use to visualise my white blood cells devouring the cancer. There you are. It's an ill wind that doesn't blow good somewhere in the world. Happy St Patrick's Day!
    AnnieD353
     
  16. Cheveefann

    Cheveefann New Member

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    Ok, I have learned that the white fluffy bugs on my Alder trees are Aphids. My question is; the leaves and ground around the Alders with fuzzy colonies are churning with yellow and whitefaced hornets that seem to just be scouring the ground under the tree and it's leaves. Is it possible the Aphids are producing something these hornets are eating? Only hornets to I might add.
     
  17. kmetzger

    kmetzger New Member

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    darrington washington
    Woolly aphids (subfamily: Eriosomatinae) are sucking insects that live on plant fluids and produce a filamentous waxy white covering which resembles cotton or wool. The adults are winged and move to new locations where they lay egg masses. The nymphs often form large cottony masses on twigs, for protection from predators. They occur throughout the Northern Hemisphere.

    Many of the numerous species of woolly aphids have only one host plant species, or alternating generations on two specific hosts. The woolly apple aphid, Eriosoma lanigerum is a widespread pest of fruit trees, feeding principally on apple, but also, pears, hawthorn, ash, alders, elms and oaks.[1]

    In flight they have been described as looking like "flying mice", and are given nicknames like "angel flies", "fluff bugs", "fairy flies", and "ash bugs
     
  18. Sleeptech

    Sleeptech New Member

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    Louisiana, USA
    I live in south Louisiana and I too am experiencing these amazing little creatures. I catch multiple aphids every morning while walking my Yorkie and have never been bitten. They simply float around like little angels. Let nature do what it does and take care of them in it's own way and in it's own time. Have patience instead of contemplating harmful pesticides to solve a problem that is not permanent and will resolve itself.
     

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