Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-vdxz6 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-25T20:18:45.098Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Population dynamics of the woolly whitefly Aleurothrixus floccosus (Maskell) on sweet orange varieties in Nigeria and association of A. floccosus with the entomopathogenic fungi Aschersonia spp.

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 November 2011

Vincent C. Umeh*
Affiliation:
Natl. Hortic. Res. Inst., PMB 5432, Idi-ishin, Jericho Reserv. Area, Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria,. [email protected]
Adegoke Adeyemi
Affiliation:
Natl. Hortic. Res. Inst., PMB 5432, Idi-ishin, Jericho Reserv. Area, Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria,. [email protected]
*
Correspondence and reprints
Get access

Abstract

Introduction. Various whitefly species attack sweet oranges in Nigeria. The economic importance of these whiteflies varies from one area to another depending on prevailing environmental conditions. Trials were established to assess the relative susceptibility of sweet orange varieties to woolly whitefly Aleurothrixus floccosus (Maskell) attack, its population dynamics and the impact of its entomopathogenic fungi Aschersonia spp.in population management. Materials and methods. Four sweet orange varieties were used for the trials: Agege, Bende, Pineapple and Valencia. The population dynamics of A. floccosus and its fungi-colonised nymphs were monitored in 2006 and 2007 by sampling 24 leaves per tree at 14-day intervals. Average monthly precipitation, relative humidity and temperature were collated for the period of our study. Results and discussion. No significant difference was observed among the populations of A. floccosus nymphs or the level of nymphal infection by Aschersonia spp. in the sweet orange varieties. Higher numbers of woolly whitefly eggs and adults were observed on the Agege and Bende varieties in 2006 and 2007, but the results were only significantly different in 2007. In both years, the populations of eggs, nymphs and adults of A. floccosus and its entomopathogenic fungi Aschersonia spp. were relatively high in the dry season months of January to March, dropped during the rainy seasons and rose again from October. Evaluation of Aschersonia spp impact showed active colonisation of whiteflies. Generally, our results showed that weather factors such as rainfall and relative humidity negatively influenced the woolly whitefly population. Conclusion. The association between the woolly whitefly population and fungi was beneficial and suggests that Aschersonia spp. could be considered as a potential biological control agent for A. floccosus

Type
Original article
Copyright
© 2011 Cirad/EDP Sciences

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Références

Anon., Presence of the woolly whitefly Aleurothrixus floccosus and its relationship with entomopathogenic fungi Aschersonia, Natl. Hortic. Res. Inst. Annu. Rep., Ibadan, Nigeria, 2006, 67 p.
Martin, J.H., An identification guide to common whitefly pest species of the world (Homoptera: Aleyrodidae), Trop. Pest Manag. 33 (1987) 298322. CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Soto, A., Ohlenschleger, F., García-Marí, F., Distribution and sampling of the whiteflies Aleurothrixus floccosus, Dialeurodes citri, and Parabemisia myricae (Homoptera: Aleyrodidae) in citrus in Spain, J. Econ. Entomol. 95 (1) (2002) 167173. CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Umeh V.C., Ker J., Spread of the spiralling white fly Aleurodicus dispersus (Homoptera: Aleyrodidae) and its parasitoids Encarsia species (Hymenoptera: Aphelinidae) on horticultural plants in Northwest and Central Nigeria, Niger. J. Hortic. Sci. (13) (2008) 1–14.
Kumashiro, B.R., Lai, P.Y., Funasaki, G.Y., Teramoto, K.K., Efficacy of Nephaspis amnicola and Encarsia haitiensis in controlling Aleurodicus dispersus in Hawaii, Proc. Hawaii. Entomol. Soc. 24 (1983) 261269. Google Scholar
Alam, S., Islam, M.N., Alam, M.Z., Islam, M.S., Effectiveness of three insecticides for the control of spiralling white fly Aleurodicus dispersus Russel of guava, Bangladesh J. Entomol. 8 (1998) 5358. Google Scholar
Umeh, V.C., Ahonsi, S., Kolade, J.A., Insect pests encountered in a citrus orchard in Nigeria, Fruits 53 (1998) 397408. Google Scholar
Islam, M.N., Rahim, M.A., Alam, M.S., Naher, N., Control of spiralling white fly (Aleurodicus dispersus Russel) of guava by spraying detergent, Asian J. Plant Sci. 2 (2003) 270272. Google Scholar
Schumutterer H., Crop pests of the Caribbean with particular reference to the Dominican Republic, Tech. Coop., Fed. Repub. Ger. (GTZ) GmbH, Eschborn, Germany, 1990, 640 p.
Fasulo T.R., Brooks R.F., Whitefly pests of Florida citrus, US Ser. Entomol. Nematol. Dep., Fla. Coop. Ext. Serv., Univ. Fla. Ser. no. ENY-815, Gainesville, Fla., USA 2009, 5 p.
Rashid, M.M., Hossain, M.M., Alam, M.Z., Ibrahim, M., Bhuiyan, M.K.A., Seasonal abundance and control of spiralling whitefly, Aleurodicus dispersus Russel, on guava, Pak. J. Biol. Sci. 6 (2003) 20502053. Google Scholar
Salinas M.D., Sumalde A.C., Life history, seasonal abundance and host range of the woolly whitefly, Aleurothrixus floccosus (Maskell) (Homoptera: Aleyrodidae), Pest Manag. Council Philipp. (PMCP), Inc. Coll., Laguna, Philipp., 1994, pp. 29.
Miklasiewicz, T.J., Walker, G.P., Population dynamics and biological control of the woolly whitefly (Homoptera: Aleyrodidae) on citrus, Environ. Entomol. 19 (1990) 14851490. CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gill R.J., The morphology of whiteflies, in: Gerling D. (Ed.), Whiteflies: their bionomics, pest status and management, Intercept, Wimborne, U.K., 1990, pp. 13–46.
Anon., User’s guide: statistics, version 6.09, SAS Inst., Cary, NC, U.S.A., 1996.
Fransen J., Natural enemies of white flies: Fungi, in: Gerling D. (Ed.), Whiteflies: their bionomics, pest status and management, Intercept, Wimborne, U.K., 1990, pp. 187–211.
Badilla, F., Toledo, J.C., Barreno, C., Patogenicidad de Metarhizium anisopliae en adultos de la “chinche salivora” Aeneolamia albofasciata y Prosapia spp. (Homoptera: Cercopidae) en la caña de azúcar en Escuintla, Guatemala, Manejo Integr. Plagas 42 (1996) 3944. Google Scholar
Fransen, J., Winkelman, K., Van Lenteren, J.C., The differential mortality at various life stages of the greenhouse whitefly Trialeurodes vaporariorum (Homoptera: Aleyrodidae), by infection with the fungus Aschersonia aleyrodis (Deuteromycosina: Coelomycetes), J. Invertebr. Path. 50 (1987) 158165. CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Núñez, E., Iannacone, J., Gómez, H., Effect of two entomopathogenic fungi controlling Aleurodicus cocois (Curtis, 1846) (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae), Chil. J. Agric. Res. 68 (1) (2008) 2130. Google Scholar
Gerling, D., Horowitz, A.R., Baumgartner, J., Autecology of Bemisia tabaci, Agric. Ecosyst. Environ. 17 (1986) 519. CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lopez, V.F., Kairo, M.T., Prey range of Nephaspis bicolor Gordon (Coleoptera: Coccinelidae), a potential biological control agent of Aleurodicus dispersus and other Aleurodicus spp. (Homoptera: Aleyrodidae), Int. J. Pest Manag. 49 (2003) 7588. CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Argov, Y., Rössler, Y., Voet, H., Rossen, D., Introducing Encarsia lahorensis against Dialeurodes citri in Israel: a case successful biological control, Biocontrol 45 (2000) 110. CrossRefGoogle Scholar