C. horni

Capitophorus horni Börner, 1931

Green artichoke and thistle aphid

Capitophorus horni, adulte aptère
Capitophorus horni, adulte ailé
Capitophorus horni, nymphes
Capitophorus horni : adultes aptères mycosés

2 mm.
Apterous: greenish to translucent, difficult to see as it blends in easily with leaves.
Alate: green, antennae fine and long, square patch slightly pigmented; cornicles long, cylindrical and pale, cauda short.

See identification file

Mainly anholocyclic.
Sexual reproduction only on Cirsium arvense (thistle).

Asteraceae: Cynara (artichoke), Cirsium (thistle).

Particular characteristics

C. horni colonized underside of leaves without inducing any deformation. It never occurs on the stem or capitulum.

Agronomic impact

Artichoke plants invaded by C. horni populations greater than 200 individuals are seriously weakeed. This results in diminished size and value of the artichoke heads harvested.

Ennemis naturels

The end of summer can see considerable mortality of these aphids, due to the action of their natural enemies, entomophthoral fungi (see photo) and parasitoid hymenopterans.

In this folder

Modification date : 07 February 2023 | Publication date : 29 September 2010 | Redactor : Evelyne Turpeau, Maurice Hullé, Bernard Chaubet