Performance and morphological differentiation of Myzus persicae (Hemiptera: Aphididae) on three types of host plants

Myzus persicae (Sulzer), which is also called the green peach aphid, is one of the most important pests in China. It has a wide host range and its adaptation to plants differs depending on the host. The host biotypes of M. persicae have not been identified; this provides opportunities to study the host specificity of this aphid. Further research may contribute to our understanding of species diversity, which demonstrates the value of investigating the host biotype of the green peach aphid. In this study, aphids were collected from peach, tobacco, and cabbage in the dry area of the Loess Plateau, China. The preference of M. persicae for different host plants and their morphological differentiation were studied by leaf selection and traditional morphometric analysis. The results indicate that the morphological characteristics of the aphids on the three plant hosts may change based on the host characteristics. A comprehensive analysis showed that aphids originally from tobacco may have a specific host biotype.