Hop-on, hop-off: the first record of the alien species crescent-marked lily aphid (Neomyzus circumflexus) (Insecta, Hemiptera, Aphididae) in Greenland

• Published in: Polar Research
• Main Authors: Wieczorek, Karina, Chłond, Dominik
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Norwegian Polar Institute 2020
• Subjects: Biological invasion; Low Arctic; Macrosiphini; pathway of introductions; pest species; Salix arbuscula; Arctic; Greenland; Nuuk; Polar Research
• Online Access: https://polarresearch.net/index.php/polar/article/view/3710; https://doi.org/10.33265/polar.v39.3710

We report for the first time the presence of the globally distributed and extremely polyphagous pest species—the crescent-marked lily aphid (or mottled arum aphid) (Neomyzus circumflexusL.) (Insecta, Hemiptera, Aphididae)—in Greenland. This species, of alien origin, was found on the ornamental plantSalix arbusculaL., imported from Denmark and sold in the main supermarket of Nuuk, the capital of Greenland. As this species is not the preferred host plant ofN. circumflexus, the possibility must be considered that the aphids were not imported along withS. arbusculafrom the mainland but were transferred from other imported ornamental plants sold in the store. Supermarkets selling decorative plants may be becoming reservoirs of alien species, facilitating the movement of aphids and other alien species that “hop on, hop off,” to borrow a phrase from the tourism industry. As unintentional introductions present the greatest threats to the Arctic ecosystems, a stricter approach to regional biosecurity needs to be considered and non-native species control and eradication should be implemented.