Bug FAQPotato Aphid
Macrosiphum euphorbiae · Order: Hemiptera · Family: Aphididae
Also called: Puceron de la pomme de terre, Puceron vert et rose de la pomme de terre, Puceron vert et rose de la pomme de terre Puceron de la pomme de terre
Source: Wikipedia
The wingless female is green or pink with a dark dorsal stripe and about 4 mm long, while the winged form has a uniformly darker body and a green abdomen. It overwinters as eggs, reproduces asexually up to ten generations in summer, and can become a serious pest of potatoes, cabbage, tomato and many other plants.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
Wingless females are green or pink with a darker dorsal stripe. Winged females have a uniformly darker body and appendages with a green abdomen.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
The body is pear-shaped and about four millimetres long.
Source: Wikipedia
How to get rid of it
If numbers are high, insecticidal soaps can be used for chemical control. Control is often difficult because aphids hide on the undersides of lower leaves, making sprays less effective.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
Females overwinter as eggs on weeds, potato sprouts in storage and lettuce grown under glass.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
Females overwinter as eggs and then produce up to seventy young by parthenogenesis over three to six weeks. There may be ten generations during the summer.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
The species originated in North America.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 38 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Illinois, California, Alaska, Washington, Utah, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Georgia.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Months it is reported in the US
Source: GBIF
More photos
Questions people ask
How can I get rid of potato aphids?
If numbers are high you can try insecticidal soaps, but they may be hard to reach because the insects hide on the undersides of lower leaves.
Source: Wikipedia
When do potato aphids appear?
They usually emerge in April on weeds and move to crops such as potatoes, cabbage and tomato in May or early June.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Aphididae)
Melon AphidAphis gossypiiDamages trees, gardens or crops
Oleander AphidAphis neriiDamages trees, gardens or crops
Witch-hazel Cone Gall AphidHormaphis hamamelidis
Beech Blight AphidGrylloprociphilus imbricatorDamages trees, gardens or crops
Rice Root AphidTetraneura nigriabdominalis
Bean AphidAphis fabaeDamages trees, gardens or cropsSources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macrosiphum_euphorbiae
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-25 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-25.