Data on aphids indicate that rarity in herbivorous insects may be a consequence of a low rate of potential population growth.

Modelling of empirical data on the abundance of host-specific, tree-dwelling aphids indicates that their abundance is determined by the effect of the abundance of their host plants on the realised annual population growth rate ( I R i ) of the aphids (Dixon & Kindlmann, [7]). Viewed in this way it is not just the abundance of the host plant of aphids that determines the abundance of aphids (Dixon & Kindlmann, [7]) but also their potential annual population growth rate ( I r i SB p sb ) and subsequently their realised population growth rate ( I R i ). The most striking and consistent feature of rare aphid species is that the period suitable for their development and reproduction is shorter than for the common species and, consequently, the potential yearly rate of increase of these rare species is lower. [Extracted from the article]