Poaceae

Poaceae

This family brings together straw cereals (wheat, barley, oats, rye, and triticale), the forage grasses (Dactylis, cocksfoot grasses, Festuca (fescue), Timothy grass, English ray-grass and Italian ray-grass) and maize.

From the economics point of view the cereals make up the great majority of the production seeing that they cover over 9 million hectares and are grown on one out of two of all farms. Their role in crop rotation is especially significant in that these farms are very large-scale operations.   

Three species of aphids regularly occur on wheat, barley and maize:

  • Rhopalosiphum padi is particularly abundant on maize at the end of summer and beginning of autumn, and on early-sown winter cereals (beginning of October)
  • Metopolophium dirhodum and Sitobion avenae in their active stage mainly in spring, on barley but especially on wheat

See Aphid damage on Poaceae

Frequent aphids

Occasional aphids

Root aphids

  • Anoecia spp.
  • Aploneura lentisci
  • Baizongia spp.
  • Forda spp.
  • Geoica spp.
  • Paracletus spp
  • Tetraneura spp

In the Aphid key folder you will find simplified keys based on photos or morphological criteria to help with identification of species.

These aphids are followed by a whole procession of parasitoids, which in turn are divided into frequent and occasional species. In the Parasitoid key folder you will find a simplified key based on morpohological criteria  (wing venation) backed with photos.

Frequent parasitoids

Occasional parasitoids 

In a similar way the parasitoids are followed by a procession of hyperparasitoids as listed here. In the Hyperparasitoid key folder a simplified key is presented based on morphological criteria and backed with photos.

Parasitica (Suborder)

Chalcidoïdea (Superfamily) :

○ Pteromalidae (Family) :

  - Asaphinae (Subfamily) :
  • Asaphes (Genus)
   - Pteromalinae : 
  • Pachyneuron sp.
  • Coruna sp.

○ Encyrtidae : 

  - Encyrtinae :
  • Syrphophagus sp.

○ Eulophidae :

  - Tetrastichinae :
  • Tetrastichus sp.

Ceraphronoïdea :

○ Megaspilidae : 

  - x

Cynipoïdea :

○ Charipidae : 

  - Alloxystinae :
  • Alloxysta sp.
  • Phaenoglyphis sp.