White-pine
Guides
Cinara strobi
White Pine Aphid
Cinara strobi, the white pine aphid, is a large aphid species specialized on white pine (Pinus strobus). It is notable for exceptionally high autumn populations that produce copious honeydew, attracting stinging wasps and creating nuisance conditions. The species exhibits parthenogenetic reproduction during the growing season, with live birth of nymphs accelerating population growth. Uniquely among Cinara aphids, C. strobi harbors three bacterial endosymbionts—Buchnera aphidicola, Sodalis sp., and Serratia symbiotica—representing an intermediate stage of symbiont replacement where the latter has become metabolically incompetent yet persists.
Diprion similis
Introduced Pine Sawfly, Imported Pine Sawfly, White Pine Sawfly
Diprion similis is a conifer-feeding sawfly native to central and northern Europe and Asia that has become invasive in North America following its accidental introduction around 1914. The species is notable for its arrhenotokous reproduction, where unfertilized eggs develop into male offspring, facilitating rapid population establishment. Larvae are gregarious defoliators of pine needles, with a strong preference for white pine (Pinus strobus) in North America. The species exhibits two generations per year in many regions, with second-generation larvae overwintering as prepupae in cocoons. Its invasive success has been attributed to parthenogenetic capabilities, lack of natural enemies in introduced ranges, and specialized pheromone communication involving the (2S,3R,7R)-propionate isomer of 3,7-dimethylpentadecan-2-ol.
Neodiprion pinetum
White Pine Sawfly
Neodiprion pinetum is a conifer-feeding sawfly native to eastern North America. Adults are broad-bodied, stingless wasps with females bearing a saw-like ovipositor used to insert eggs into pine needles. Larvae are creamy-yellow with black heads and four longitudinal rows of black spots, resembling caterpillars but possessing more prolegs. The species is frequently monophagous on eastern white pine (Pinus strobus), though larvae have been documented on several other pine species. Localized outbreaks occur regularly and can kill small stands of host trees, though natural enemies including egg and larval parasitoids typically provide substantial biological control.
Pineus strobi
Pine Bark Adelgid, White Pine Bark Aphid
Pineus strobi is a small, sap-sucking insect in the family Adelgidae, commonly known as the pine bark adelgid or white pine bark aphid. It is a specialist feeder on white pine (Pinus strobus) and related pine species, forming dense colonies on bark and branches. The species has been introduced to regions outside its native range, including central European Russia and the Fergana Valley, where it is considered invasive. Like other adelgids, it possesses complex associations with bacterial endosymbionts that aid in nutritional processing.