Whiteflies are Hemipterans that typically feed on the undersides of plant leaves. They comprise the family Aleyrodidae, the only family in the superfamily Aleyrodoidea. More than 1550 species have been described.
The Aphididae are a very large insect family in the aphid superfamily (Aphidoidea), of the order Hemiptera. These insects suck the sap from plant leaves. Several thousand species are placed in this family, many of which are considered plant/crop pests. They are the family of insects containing most plant virus vectors with the green peach aphid being one of the most prevalent and indiscriminate carriers.
The glassy-winged sharpshooter is a large leafhopper insect from the family Cicadellidae, similar to other species of sharpshooter.
Notodontidae is a family of moths with approximately 3,800 known species. The family was described by James Francis Stephens in 1829. Moths of this family are found in all parts of the world, but they are most concentrated in tropical areas, especially in the New World.
The term cabbage worm is primarily used for any of four kinds of lepidopteran whose larvae feed on cabbages and other cole crops. Favorite foods include broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, collards, kale, mustard greens, turnip greens, radishes, turnips, rutabagas and kohlrabi. This small group of similar pest species is known to agriculturists as the cabbage worm compte butterflies.
Geocoris is a genus of insects in the family Geocoridae. Commonly known as big-eyed bugs, the species in Geocoris are beneficial predators, but are often confused with the true chinch bug, which is a pest. There are more than 140 described species in Geocoris.
A leafhopper is the common name for any species from the family Cicadellidae. These minute insects, colloquially known as hoppers, are plant feeders that suck plant sap from grass, shrubs, or trees. Their hind legs are modified for jumping, and are covered with hairs that facilitate the spreading of a secretion over their bodies that acts as a water repellent and carrier of pheromones. They undergo a partial metamorphosis, and have various host associations, varying from very generalized to very specific. Some species have a cosmopolitan distribution, or occur throughout the temperate and tropical regions. Some are pests or vectors of plant viruses and phytoplasmas. The family is distributed all over the world, and constitutes the second-largest hemipteran family, with at least 20,000 described species.
Culex is a genus of mosquitoes, several species of which serve as vectors of one or more important diseases of birds, humans, and other animals. The diseases they vector include arbovirus infections such as West Nile virus, Japanese encephalitis, or St. Louis encephalitis, but also filariasis and avian malaria. They occur worldwide except for the extreme northern parts of the temperate zone, and are the most common form of mosquito encountered in some major U.S. cities, such as Los Angeles.
Xylella fastidiosa is an aerobic, Gram-negative bacterium of the monotypic genus Xylella. It is a plant pathogen, and is transmitted exclusively by xylem fluid feeding sap insects. Many plant diseases are due to symptomatic infections of X. fastidiosa, including bacterial leaf scorch, oleander leaf scorch, coffee leaf scorch (CLS), alfalfa dwarf, phony peach disease, and the economically important Pierce's disease of grapes (PD) and citrus variegated chlorosis (CVC). In Europe it has attacked olive trees in the Salento area of Southern Italy causing olive quick decline syndrome (OQDS). While distributions of X. fastidiosa–related diseases are mostly limited to the Americas, outbreaks have occurred in Taiwan, Slovakia, and other countries worldwide.
Maconellicoccus hirsutus, is a pest of many plants, trees, and shrubs. It infests hibiscus, citrus, coffee, sugar cane, annonas, plums, guava, mango, okra, sorrel, teak, mora, pigeon pea, peanut, grapevine, maize, asparagus, chrysanthemum, beans, cotton, soybean, cocoa, and many other plants. The pest forms colonies on the host plant, and if left undisturbed, the colonies will grow into large masses of white waxy coverings on branches, fruiting structures, leaves, and even whole plants, including large trees.
The Eulophidae are a large family of hymenopteran insects, with over 4,300 described species in some 300 genera. The family includes the genus Elasmus, which used to be treated as a separate family, "Elasmidae", and is now treated as a subfamily of Eulophidae. These minute insects are challenging to study, as they deteriorate rapidly after death unless extreme care is taken, making identification of most museum specimens difficult. The larvae of a very few species feed on plants, but the majority are primary parasitoids on a huge range of arthropods at all stages of development. They are exceptional in that they are one of two hymenopteran families with some species that are known to parasitize Thysanoptera. Eulophids are found throughout the world in virtually all habitats.
The Aphelinidae are a moderate-sized family of tiny parasitic wasps, with about 1100 described species in some 28 genera. These minute insects are challenging to study, as they deteriorate rapidly after death unless extreme care is taken, making identification of most museum specimens difficult. The larvae of the majority are primary parasitoids on Hemiptera, though other hosts are attacked, and details of the life history can be variable. Males and females may have different hosts and different life histories.
Gracillariidae is an important family of insects in the order Lepidoptera and the principal family of leaf miners that includes several economic, horticultural or recently invasive pest species such as the horse-chestnut leaf miner, Cameraria ohridella.
Toxoptera citricida is a species of aphid known by the common names brown citrus aphid, black citrus aphid, and oriental citrus aphid. It is a pest of citrus and vector for the pathogenic plant virus citrus tristeza virus. The aphid spread the virus through citrus groves in Brazil and Venezuela in the 1970s, leading to the near destruction of the citrus industry there. This aphid was first discovered in Florida in 1995.
Diaphorina citri, the Asian citrus psyllid, is a sap-sucking, hemipteran bug in the family Liviidae. It is one of two confirmed vectors of citrus greening disease. It has a wide distribution in southern Asia and has spread to other citrus growing regions.
Poecilocapsus lineatus, commonly known as the Fourlined Plant Bug, is a species of true bug (Hemiptera) in the family Miridae. This species is native to the United States and Canada.
Planococcus citri, commonly known as the citrus mealybug, is a species of mealybugs native to Asia. It has been introduced to the rest of the world, including Europe, the Americas, and Oceania, as an agricultural pest. It is associated with citrus, but it attacks a wide range of crop plants, ornamental plants, and wild flora.
The greenbug, or wheat aphid, is an aphid in the superfamily Aphidoidea in the order Hemiptera. It is a true bug and feeds on the leaves of Gramineae (grass) family members.
Dysdercus suturellus is a species of true bug in the family Pyrrhocoridae, commonly known as a cotton stainer. The adult insect is slender, about 1 to 1.5 cm long, with a red thorax and dark brown wings marked with a yellow cross. It is native to the southeast of the United States, Jamaica and Puerto Rico. It is a pest of cotton crops and other plants, the adults and older nymphs feeding on the emerging bolls and the ripening seeds.
Euthyrhynchus floridanus, the Florida predatory stink bug, is a species of carnivorous shield bug in the family Pentatomidae, the only species in the genus Euthyrhynchus. It is native to the hottest parts of the southeastern United States and is considered beneficial because it feeds on many species of pest insects. They also feed on things such as grasshoppers and other small insects. This species also hunts in a pack, with up to twelve.
