Biology and management of mealybugs in vineyards

Abstract

Economic losses resulting from vineyard mealybug infestations have increased dramatically during the past decade. In response, there has been a cosmopolitan effort to improve control strategies and better understand mealybug biology and ecology, as well as their role as vectors of plant pathogens. Mealybugs are named for the powdery secretions covering their bodies. The most important vineyard mealybugs belong to the subfamily Pseudococcinae (Hardy et al. 2008). Although numerous mealybug species are found in vineyards, this chapter will cover only those that have risen to the level of primary pest. These are the grape mealybug, Pseudococcus maritimus (Ehrhorn), obscure mealybug, Pseudococcus viburni (Signoret), long-tailed mealybug, Pseudococcus longispinus (Targioni Tozzetti), citrophilus mealybug, Pseudococcus calceolariae (Maskell), vine mealybug, Planococcus ficus (Signoret), citrus mealybug, Planococcus citri (Risso), pink hibiscus mealybug, Maconellicoccus hirsutus (Green), and the newly identified Gills mealybug, Ferrisia gilli Gullan. Meanwhile in Brazil and India, Dysmicoccus brevipes (Cockerell) and Xenococcus annandalei Silvestri respectively, feed on vine roots. Collectively, these species will be referred to as the vineyard mealybugs, although their host range is diverse and many are pests of other agricultural crops and ornamental plants (McKenzie 1967; Ben-Dov 1995).