Insects Feeding
on these Plants:
____________
Lolium spp. (Rye Grass) [Poaceae]
(Observations are from Cranshaw, Blackman & Eastop, Spencer & Steyskal, Natural History Museum, ScaleNet)
Coleoptera (Beetles)
Curculionidae: Sphenophorus parvulus (Bluegrass Billbug) [larvae feed on the roots & crowns of perennial grasses] Crw2004; Scarabaeidae: Cyclocephala borealis (Northern Masked Chafer) [larvae feed on the roots of perennial grasses] Crw2004
Diptera (Flies)
Agromyzidae: Cerodontha muscina [larvae are leaf-miners; widespread] SS1986
Heteroptera (True Bugs)
Blissidae: Blissus leucopterus hirtus (Hairy Chinch Bug) [causes brown patches in lawns, feeds on perennial grasses] Crw2004
Homoptera (Sucking Insects)
Aphididae: Diuraphis frequens [causes unfurled leaves to bunch-up, halting growth] BE2013, Forda formicaria [feeds on roots of various grasses; this Eurasian aphid has been introduced into North America, including Illinois] BE2013, Forda marginata [feeds on roots of various grasses; this Eurasian aphid has been introduced into North America, including Wisconsin] BE2013, Metopolophium dirhodum (Rose-Grass Aphid) [found on roses as primary hosts, migrating during the summer to the leaves of various grasses, including some sedges & rushes] BE2013, Rhopalosiphum padi (Bird Cherry & Oat Aphid) Crw2004, Utamphorophora humboldti [found on Ninebark shrubs as primary hosts, migrating during the summer to the leaf blades & inflorescences of various grasses; this aphid has been found in SE Canada] BE2013; Pseudococcidae: Heterococcus nudus (Naked Grass Mealybug) [found on the crown & underneath leaf sheaths of host plants; this insect is widely distributed in northern USA & California] SN2014
Lepidoptera (Butterflies, Skippers, & Moths)
Crambidae: Pediasia trisecta (Larger Sod Webworm) [larvae feed on grass blades] Crw2004; Noctuidae: Apamea niveivenosa (Snowy-veined Apamea) [this insect is found north of Illinois] NHM2010, Nephelodes minians (Bronzed Cutworm) [feeds on various grasses] Crw2004, Spodoptera frugiperda (Fall Armyworm) NHM2010; Scythrididae: Scythris graminivorella [larvae are leaf-miners; syn. Asymmetrura graminivorella] NHM2010