Description:
The adult female is wingless, legless (sedentary form) and has a broadly reniform, brownish-red scale-like cover, 1,5-2,0mm, firmly attached to the surface. They give birth to mobile nymphs (crawlers)that they move around the plant until the next developmental stage in which they become sedentary. The adult male is winged and it doesn’t feed on the plant. Its only purpose is to mate.
Symptoms:
Leaves: Infected leaves covered with the different developmental stages of the insect, chlorosis around the feeding spots
Stem: Infected branches, covered with the different developmental stages of the insect. High infested branches develop distinct lesions and become desiccated
Fruits: Speckled unmarketable fruits, covered with the different developmental stages of the insect, fruits drop
Hosts: citrus, olive tree, figs, grapevine, pear tree, plum tree, almond tree
Taxonomy:
| Kingdom | Animalia |
|---|---|
| Class | Insecta |
| Order | Hemiptera |
| Family | Diaspididae |
| Genus | Aonidiella |
| Species | aurantii |
References:
Alford D. V. (2014). Pests of Fruit Crops. A Colour Handbook, CRC Press, 2nd Edition