This is a small aphid, smaller than most other aphids. The winged adults are about 1.25 mm long, soft bodied, and yellow to dark green with a black head and thorax. The wings are held rooflike over the abdomen at rest. Wingless adults tend to be 1.0 to 1.5 mm long, uniform in color, and yellow to dark green. The antennae and cornicles are shorter than those of winged adults.
Pale individuals tend to be smaller and to have fewer antennal segments than dark individuals.
Those destined to be winged adults have wing buds in the later instars. C, Wingless adult. The melon aphid is apparently distributed throughout the tropic, subtropic, and temperate zones of the world. It is more of a problem in the southern portions of the United States. Melons and other cucurbits, okra, hops, strawberries, beans, spinach, tomatoes, clover, asparagus, citrus, catalpa, violet, hydrangea, begonia, ground ivy, and weeds are some melon aphid hosts.