Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Arthropoda

Class: Insecta

Order: Hemiptera

Suborder: Homoptera

Superfamily: Aphidoidea


Aphids, also known as greenfly/blackfly or plant lice, are minute plant-feeding insects in the superfamily Aphidoidea in the homopterous division of the order Hemiptera.

About 4,000 species of aphids are known, classified in 10 families; of these, around 250 species are serious pests for agriculture and forestry as well as an annoyance for gardeners. They vary in size from 1-10 mm long.

Important natural enemies include the predatory ladybugs (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae), hoverfly larvae (Diptera: Syrphidae), and lacewings (Neuroptera: Chrysopidae), and entomopathogenic fungi like Lecanicillium lecanii and the Entomophthorales.

Aphids are distributed world-wide, but they are most common in temperate zones. It is possible for aphids to migrate great distances depending on the weather patterns (mainly passive dispersal riding on winds); for example, the lettuce aphid spreading from New Zealand to Tasmania. They have also been spread by humans transporting infested plant material.

from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aphid