adelgid

American  

[uh-del-jid] / əˈdɛl dʒɪd /

noun

1. any of various homopterous insects of the family Adelgidae, as Adelges abietis spruce gall aphid, or spruce gall adelgid and Pineus pinifoliae pine leaf aphid, that feed and form galls on conifers.

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Etymology

Origin of adelgid

From New Latin Adelgidae, equivalent to Adelg(es) a genus name (apparently from Greek ádel(os) “unseen, invisible” ( a- “not” + dêlos “visible, clear”) + New Latin -ges further origin unknown: unexplained by the name's originator) + -idae; a- ⁶, -id ²

Example Sentences

While beetles gnaw away and burrow through the phloem under the trees' bark, the much smaller, flightless adelgid sucks out the trees' fluids and leaves behind a toxic saliva.

From Science Daily • May 14, 2024

The emerald ash borer and wooly adelgid are also getting a leg up from climate change, which has warmed winters and allowed the insects to expand their North American range.

From Salon • Feb. 14, 2022

Forest Service biologist, was studying Asian hemlocks’ genetics to understand why they can resist the adelgid when the Eastern hemlock can’t.

From National Geographic • Jan. 30, 2018

Yet here in the Northwest, western hemlocks live with adelgid.

From Seattle Times • Apr. 13, 2017

In just seven years, the woolly adelgid has fatally damaged more than 90 percent of the park’s hemlocks.

From "A Walk in the Woods" by Bill Bryson