Purple-loosestrife
Guides
Myzus lythri
loosestrife aphid
Myzus lythri is a specialized aphid species that feeds exclusively on purple loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria). It has been used as an indicator species to track the distribution and spread of this invasive weed in North America. Suction trap surveys in Idaho demonstrated that aphid collection patterns successfully predicted undocumented purple loosestrife populations, representing a novel application of insect survey data for weed documentation.