In temperate climates most of the population overwinters as nymphs or apterae, especially on potato sprouts and on many glasshouse plants and wild species such as foxglove (Digitalis). As a result, this is often one of the first aphid species to find on young plants in the spring. The high toxicity of the saliva of the glasshouse - potato aphid may produce deformation and discoloration of leaves being fed upon. This results in direct feeding damage to potatoes and peppers. It can also be a vector of about 40 plant viruses, but its relatively poor virus transmission efficiency makes it unimportant as a virus vector in the field. Its importance is much greater in glasshouses. Its distribution is virtually cosmopolitan.