Novel approaches for the management of mealybug pests

Abstract

Mealybugs (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae) are small, soft-bodied plant sap-sucking insects that constitute the second largest family of scale insects (Hemiptera: Coccoidea), with more than 2,000 described species and ca. 290 genera (Ben-Dov 2006; Downie and Gullan 2004). Their common name is derived from the mealy wax secretion that usually covers their bodies (Kosztarab 1996). A recent phylogenetic study, based on analysis of nucleotide sequence data, supported the existence of three subfamilies Pseudococcinae, Phenacoccinae and Rhizoecinae (Downie and Gullan 2005). This estimate was recently revised in light of integrated molecular and morphological data, and only two subfamilies emerged: Pseudococcinae and Phenacoccinae (Hardy et al. 2008). Mealybugs are severe agricultural pests. According to Miller et al. (2002), 158 species of mealybugs are recognized as pests worldwide. These species most frequently originate from the Palearctic region (ca. 29%), followed by the Nearctic (17%), Neotropical (16%), Oriental (15%), Afrotropical (12%) and Australasian (11%) regions. Approximately 22% of the mealybug pests are polyphagous, 20% occur on grasses (e.g., sugar cane), 16% on citrus and tropical fruits, and 6% on coffee. © Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2009.