Difference Between Aphid and Jassid

The key difference between Aphid and Jassid is the presence and absence of wings. Aphids do not possess wings in their adult forms, while jassids possess wings during their adulthood.

Aphids and jassids are plant pests that spread plant diseases since they function as vectors. Both groups of insects are able to feed on the plant sap. They suck the plant sap through their mouthparts.

CONTENTS

1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is Aphid 
3. What is Jassid
4. Similarities Between Aphid and Jassid
5. Side by Side Comparison – Aphid vs Jassid in Tabular Form
6. Summary

What is Aphid?

Aphids are soft-bodied insects. They are plant pests that depend on the sap of the plant. Therefore, they have piercing mouthparts that facilitate the sucking action. They usually live in colonies on the underside of the tender leaves.

Length of aphid varies from about 4-8 mm in length. Their bodies are pear-shaped. Moreover, the colour of aphids varies from yellow, brown, red to black. They secrete a waxy substance over their bodies. Wings are not present in adult forms, and even if they have wings, they are translucent. They also have a pair of dorsal tube-like appendages.

Aphids do not generally harm healthy plants. Instead, they harm the weak plants. The main feed of aphids are the buds and fruits of the plant. Also, flower buds and malformed flowers also act as a feed for aphids. Aphids produce honeydew. Honeydew is the sugary waste of aphids. It also acts as a nutrient source for fungi and facilitates fungal growth in plants.

What is Jassid?

Jassids, also called leafhoppers, are insects belonging to the family of Cicadellidae. The adult jassid is yellow or green in colour. Some species of jassids vary in colour – from vivid red to white or blue colour. Their body size is about 28mm in length, and they appear wedge-shaped. Moreover, jassids contain two pairs of wings and have a special mouthpart called the stylet. Their mouthparts are capable of sucking. They have antennae which have 3 – 10 segments. Furthermore, they have compound eyes. Their bodies are segments – head, thorax and abdomen.

Jassids have a larval stage known as the nymph. These are pests which can act as carriers of diseases in plants. Jassids feed on plant parenchyma. Some jassid species have toxic saliva. Moreover, jassids are sensitive to weather changes and do not survive in extreme hot and extreme cold weathers.

What are the Similarities Between Aphid and Jassid?

• Aphid and jassid are insects that act as plant pests.
• Both have appendages to suck the plant sap.
• Moreover, both are responsible for the spread of plant diseases.
• They have segmented bodies.
• Both types are commonly yellow or green in colour.

What is the Difference Between Aphid and Jassid?

The key difference between aphid and jassid is the presence of wings in the adult form of each species. Adult jassids possess wings, while adult aphids do not possess wings. They also vary in their shape and size as compared below in the infographic of difference between aphid and jassid.

Summary – Aphid vs Jassid

Aphids and jassids are two types of plant pests belonging to two different families. Aphids belong to the family Aphidoidea while jassids belong to the family of Cicadellidae. The adult aphids do not possess wings while the adult jassids possess wings. So, this is the key difference between aphid and jassid. Moreover, both species act as plant pests and carriers of plant diseases. They both have larval stages during their lifecycle.

Reference:

1. “Aphids.” Entomology, Available here.
2. “Leafhoppers or Jassids.” Herbguide, Available here.

Image Courtesy:

1. “COTTON JASSID – ADULT” Surender Dalal (CC BY 2.0) via Flickr
2. “Aphid on leaf05” By WikiPedant – Own work (CC BY-SA 4.0) via Commons Wikimedia