Learning more about this much-maligned bug will make you put down your spray bottle
You ’ve heard of start head lice , but did you have sex your tree can get barklice ? For me , anything with the wordlicein the name sure sounds like bad news show . Every once in a while , I get an email from a homeowner with a photo of lilliputian insects cover the bark of a tree in their yard . Often this turns out to be a herd of barklice . Frequently the exposure from the homeowner will be accompany with the dubiousness “ What should I spray to pour down them ? ” as luck would have it , the answer is soft : Barklice are harmless to the shrubs and trees they live on . They are a very interesting group of insects , and although it might be a bit alarming to take on them in the garden , they really are doing no damage . As long as you’re able to evidence the difference between them and aphid , they may even be helpful to your plants .
Did you enamor that I call in a grouping of barklice a herd ? In fact , some people call them “ Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree Bos taurus . ” This is a reasonably accurate description . Barklice change of location in group around the barque of a Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree . They are particularly attracted to tree with fluid bark . If you disturb them , they will dot and then return to their herd .
Know the difference between barklice and aphids
During some life microscope stage , barklice can be confused for plant - damaging aphid , especially due to their wings being similar . However , aphids conduct vasiform sucking mouthparts , have few segments in their antennae ( about six versus many in barklice ) , and often have distinct tail pipework . With the use of a hand lens and some investigating , you should be able to order the difference .
Don’t worry if you see webs
Barklice are also silk spinners . Eggs often rest beneath these satiny mat . In uncommon cases , dense populations of barklice can make satiny veil that encase entire tree trunk and branches . For the gardener , this is again nothing to vex about . Barklice will often devour their WWW at the end of the season . They really are one of nature ’s best cleanup gang .
I reached out to Matthew Bertone , director of the Plant Disease and Insect Clinic at North Carolina State University , to ask more about barklice . “ I believe barklice are one of the most underappreciated group of dirt ball , ” he said . “ Often fiddling [ is ] know by the populace despite [ them ] being very common out in the surround . I also think barklice are pretty cunning , and many have really interesting biology , include social conduct . Many mintage can also be quite attractive or interesting looking . Even their testis can be surprisingly intricate and beautiful . ”
Are barklice beneficial insects?
Some entomologists suggest that barklice are a benefit to the tree they dwell . By houseclean up fungus kingdom , alga , dead plant tissue , and other rubble , they can help your Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree . Again , they are natural recyclers . Often we are suspicious of any louse we do n’t have intercourse a band about . accept the fourth dimension as gardener to tell apart between plague , beneficial louse , and even neutral bugs help us move toward a more harmonious balance in our garden . Many Modern gardeners will go to warfare on almost any insect they see in their yards . As we age in our knowledge , we understand that some insects are work for us to keep equilibrium in the garden .
If you have never seen this interesting insect , perhaps this will be your year . Often in the southeast United States , you might start to see them in April as nymphs . Nymphs are dark gray with lighter - gloss band between their abdominal segments . If you see them , let them do their matter ; they are just passers - by on your plants .
— Andy Pulte is a faculty appendage in the plant sciences section at the University of Tennessee .
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A single barklouse is not so intimidating, but when a group of them are spinning webs all over your trees, you might get nervous.Photo: Matt Bertone
Both aphids (left) and barklice (right) are small insects that group together on plants. But aphids are harmful to plants and barklice are not.Photos: Steve Aitken (left), Matt Bertone (right)
It’s a common sight. These small, skittering insects often cause gardeners to freak out. But they may actually be beneficial.Photo: Dawn Dailey O’Brien, Cornell University, bugwood.org
