Sternorrhyncha

Sternorrhyncha; Temporal range:
	An aphid
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Clade:	Pancrustacea
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Hemiptera
Suborder:	Sternorrhyncha
Superfamilies
	Aleyrodoidea; Aphidoidea; Coccoidea; Phylloxeroidea; Psylloidea;

The Sternorrhyncha¹²³ suborder of the Hemiptera contains the aphids, whiteflies, and scale insects, groups which were traditionally included in the now-obsolete order "Homoptera". The name "Sternorrhyncha" refers to the rearward position of the mouthparts relative to the head.

Distributed worldwide, all members of this group are plant-feeders, many considered pests feeding on major crops and ornamental plants.

Many exhibit modified morphology and/or life cycles, including phenomena such as flightless morphs, parthenogenesis, sexual dimorphism, and eusociality.

Phylogeny

The phylogeny of the extant Sternorrhyncha, from a 2024 study using ultraconserved genetic elements, is shown in the cladogram:⁴

Sternorrhyncha

	Aleyrodoidea (whiteflies)

	Psylloidea (jumping plant lice, etc.)

Coccoidea (scale insects)

Aphidomorpha

	Phylloxeroidea (phylloxera bugs)

	Aphididae (aphids)

The evolutionary position of several fossil taxa are unclear. A suggested phylogeny is:⁵⁶

†Pincombeomorpha

	Boreoscytidae

	Pincombeidae

	Simulaphididae

Coccidomorpha

†Naibiomorpha

	Dracaphididae

	Naibiidae

	Sinojuraphididae

Aphidomorpha

†Protopsyllidioidea

	†Dinglomorpha

	Aleyrodomorpha

	†Liadopsyllidae

	Psylloidea

Groups

Well-known groups in the Sternorrhyncha include:

aphids – (Aphididae)
woolly and gall-making aphids (Eriosomatinae)
pine and spruce aphids (Adelgidae)
phylloxerans (Phylloxeridae, including the vine phylloxera)
whiteflies – (Aleyrodidae)
jumping plant lice (Psyllidae and allied families)
Superfamily Coccoidea (scale insects)
- cottony cushion scales, giant coccids, and ground pearls (Margarodidae)
- armoured scales (Diaspididae)
- cochineal insects (Dactylopiidae)
- lac scales (Kerriidae, Lacciferidae, Tachardinidae)
- soft scales (Coccidae)
- pit scales (Asterolecaniidae)
- mealybugs (Pseudococcidae)
- felted scales (Eriococcidae)

References

"ITIS standard report - Sternorrhyncha". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
Grimaldi & Engel (2005) Evolution of the Insects 289-303.
Paraneoptera Species File (Version 5.0/5.0)
Liu, Dajun; Cui, Jinyu; Liu, Yubo; Niu, Minmin; Wang, Fang; Zhao, Qing; Cai, Bo; Zhang, Hufang; Wei, Jiufeng (2024). "Ultraconserved elements from transcriptome and genome data provide insight into the phylogenomics of Sternorrhyncha (Insecta: Hemiptera)". Cladistics. 40 (5): 496–509. doi:10.1111/cla.12585. Retrieved 15 October 2025.
Drohojowska, Jowita; Szwedo, Jacek; Żyła, Dagmara; Huang, Di-Ying; Müller, Patrick (2020). "Fossils reshape the Sternorrhyncha evolutionary tree (Insecta, Hemiptera)". Scientific Reports. 10 (1): 11390. doi:10.1038/s41598-020-68220-x. PMC 7347605. PMID 32647332.
Szwedo, Jacek (2016). "The unity, diversity and conformity of bugs (Hemiptera) through time". Earth and Environmental Science Transactions of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. 107 (2–3): 109–128. Bibcode:2016EESTR.107..109S. doi:10.1017/S175569101700038X. S2CID 134243346.

External links

Suborder Sternorrhyncha—Plant-parasitic Hemipterans at BugGuide

[Integrated_Taxonomic_Information_System_-_ITIS_standard_report_-_Sternorrhyncha-1] "ITIS standard report - Sternorrhyncha". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved 27 July 2014.

[2] Grimaldi & Engel (2005) Evolution of the Insects 289-303.

[3] Paraneoptera Species File (Version 5.0/5.0)

[Liu_Cui_Liu_Niu_2024-4] Liu, Dajun; Cui, Jinyu; Liu, Yubo; Niu, Minmin; Wang, Fang; Zhao, Qing; Cai, Bo; Zhang, Hufang; Wei, Jiufeng (2024). "Ultraconserved elements from transcriptome and genome data provide insight into the phylogenomics of Sternorrhyncha (Insecta: Hemiptera)". Cladistics. 40 (5): 496–509. doi:10.1111/cla.12585. Retrieved 15 October 2025.

[5] Drohojowska, Jowita; Szwedo, Jacek; Żyła, Dagmara; Huang, Di-Ying; Müller, Patrick (2020). "Fossils reshape the Sternorrhyncha evolutionary tree (Insecta, Hemiptera)". Scientific Reports. 10 (1): 11390. doi:10.1038/s41598-020-68220-x. PMC 7347605. PMID 32647332.

[6] Szwedo, Jacek (2016). "The unity, diversity and conformity of bugs (Hemiptera) through time". Earth and Environmental Science Transactions of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. 107 (2–3): 109–128. Bibcode:2016EESTR.107..109S. doi:10.1017/S175569101700038X. S2CID 134243346.

1

2

3

4

5

6