Bug Wiki
Bug Wiki / All bugs / True bugs and cicadas
Sticker of Valerian psyllid
Bug card No. 4534 of 4,939

Valerian psyllid

Trioza centranthi
Eats: PlantsTrue bugs and cicadasGardens and meadows6 legs

The valerian psyllid is a tiny bug that sucks sap from plants. It makes the leaves of red valerian and cornsalad grow in a strange, puffy way. These odd growths are called galls.

Lives in
Europe, from Great Britain and France to Ukraine
Top speed
about 0.2 km/h (0.12 mph)
On foot, estimate
Can it hurt you?
Harmless
Harmless. It is tiny and does not bite people or sting.
What does it eat?
It drinks the sap of valerian and cornsalad plants through its tiny beak.
For real!Photo of Valerian psyllid
Picture by Jowaninpensans. CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

How fast is it?

cool stuff

Fun facts

1

Where it feeds, the top leaf grows wider than normal and its edges swell and curl upwards.

2

It can even turn flowers into a tangled ball of little leaves.

3

It lives on red valerian and on cornsalad, also called lamb's lettuce.

4

It was first described by a French insect scientist in 1829.

you asked

Most asked questions about Valerian psyllid

?What does the valerian psyllid do to plants?

It makes galls, so the leaves grow puffy and curled and the flowers turn leafy.

?Is the valerian psyllid dangerous?

No. It is a tiny, harmless sap-sucking bug.

For bug experts

Scientific name
Trioza centranthi
Named by
Vallot, 1829
Group
True bugs and cicadas
Family
Triozidae
Classification
Insecta > Hemiptera > Triozidae
Lives on
Europe

Where the facts come from

  1. Trioza centranthi (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0): what it looks like, where it lives, what it eats, sizes and fun facts, retold in simple words.
  2. Picture by Jowaninpensans. CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons. The sticker of this bug is drawn from this picture.

If we got something wrong, sorry, we are bug fans, not a science journal. Tell us at [email protected] and we will fix it.

Bug Wiki honey jar For grown-ups: Bug Wiki is free, with no ads and no tracking. A small tip helps keep it online.Leave a tip

More from the same group: True bugs and cicadas

Pharaoh cicadaTrue bugs and cicadasSpotted lanternflyTrue bugs and cicadasBrown marmorated stink bugTrue bugs and cicadasCochinealTrue bugs and cicadasBoxelder bugTrue bugs and cicadasWestern conifer seed bugTrue bugs and cicadas

Also at home here: Gardens and meadows

Ligated furrow beeBees and bumblebeesWall brownButterfliesSpotted wolf spiderSpidersQueensland fruit flyFlies and mosquitoesHebrew characterMothsNew Zealand red admiralButterflies
Honey jarfor grown-ups