If you’re in the southeastern U.S. right now, you may have noticed swarms of fuzzy, white specks sticking to your car’s windshield or covering nearby trees.
While the specks might look like dust, pollen or lint, they’re probably not. Chances are, they’re actually small insects called woolly aphids. While the pests can’t harm humans, they’re certainly a nuisance for people and plants alike in the region.
Some types of woolly aphids are even invasive and can cause long-term stress for the plants they feed on, experts say.
Here’s what you need to know about these fuzzy creatures:
What are woolly aphids?
Woolly aphids are small insects that are covered in a white, fuzzy-looking wax. They feed on leaves and excrete “copious amounts of honeydew,” which can, in turn, cause black sooty mold to accumulate, according to Protect Tennessee Forests, a program associated with the Tennessee Department of Agriculture.
There are several types of woolly aphids, and some are even invasive, Midhula Gireesh, an assistant professor at the University of Tennessee, told the Chattanooga Times Free Press.
“Woolly aphid is a common name for several species, and their impact and invasiveness depend on the specific species,” Gireesh said. “For instance, the woolly apple aphid is native to eastern North America, but the woolly hackberry aphid is an introduced species originally from Asia.”
If you’re in Tennessee or Alabama, you’re likely seeing woolly hackberry aphids in particular. Other types of woolly aphids include the woolly elm aphid, the woolly alder aphid and the beech blight aphid, according to the University of Maryland.
Why are there so many woolly aphids in the Southeast right now?
Jason Oliver, a research professor at the Tennessee State University, told local outlet WKRN that woolly aphids are thriving right now because the region is going through a long period of warm weather. This means the bugs can reproduce for longer.
The number of woolly aphids will likely decrease as temperatures drop in the coming months.
Are woolly aphids dangerous to people or pets?
No, woolly aphids are not dangerous to people or pets. They do not bite or sting, and they don’t infest homes, the Montgomery Advertiser reports.
However, the pests can be annoying, as they often stick to windshields and can leave behind mold on cars and other objects.
“Sooty mold also gets accumulated on the leaves of the host trees, other small plants, as well as on vehicles and patio furniture located beneath infested trees,” Gireesh told the Chattanooga Times Free Press.
Residents have taken to social media to complain about the pests.
“I thought it was snow when I looked out my windows,” one Facebook user commented underneath a local news report about the phenomenon.
“They are a nuisance!” another user wrote underneath a post from Protect Tennessee Forests.
Do woolly aphids harm the ecosystem?
Woolly hackberry aphids, which like to hang out on hackberry trees, can cause the plants stress over time, Oliver told WKRN.
“The adults feed on the sap in the leaves,” Oliver explained. “If you hit a branch with a stick, you’ll see a cloud of them fly off — that’s what they feed on.”
The mold that grows from the woolly aphid’s honeydew excrement can also make the trees unsightly, Gireesh told the Chattanooga Times Free Press.
“Woolly hackberry aphids are mostly nuisance pests and do not necessarily kill the tree,” she said. “However, due to their excess honeydew production, sooty mold — a black, powdery fungus that grows on plants — gets accumulated, and the trees become unsightly.”
What can residents do to avoid the pests?
While some pesticides are effective, that might not be an option for every resident impacted by the swarms.
Residents can also reduce the growth of sooty mold by “removing personal property from beneath infested trees or cleaning items that are covered in honeydew,” according to Protect Tennessee Forests.
