Mealybugs (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae) are pests constraining the international trade of Brazilian table grapes. They damage grapes by transmitting viruses and toxins, causing defoliation, chlorosis, and vigor losses and favoring the development of sooty mold. Difficulties in mealybug identification remain an obstacle to the adequate management of these pests. In this study, our primary aim was to identify the principal mealybug species infesting the major table grape-producing regions in Brazil, by morphological and molecular characterization. Our secondary aim was to develop a rapid identification kit based on species-specific Polymerase Chain Reactions, to facilitate the routine identification of the most common pest species. We surveyed 40 sites infested with mealybugs and identified 17 species: Dysmicoccus brevipes (Cockerell), Dysmicoccus sylvarum Williams and Granara de Willink, Dysmicoccus texensis (Tinsley), Ferrisia cristinae Kaydan and Gullan, Ferrisia meridionalis Williams, Ferrisia terani Williams and Granara de Willink, Phenacoccus baccharidis Williams, Phenacoccus parvus Morrison, Phenacoccus solenopsis Tinsley, Planococcus citri (Risso), Pseudococcus viburni (Signoret), Pseudococcus cryptus Hempel, four taxa closely related each of to Pseudococcus viburni, Pseudococcus sociabilis Hambleton, Pseudococcus maritimus (Ehrhorn) and Pseudococcus meridionalis Prado, and one specimen from the genus Pseudococcus Westwood. The PCR method developed effectively identified five mealybug species of economic interest on grape in Brazil: D. brevipes, Pl. citri, Ps. viburni, Ph. solenopsis and Planococcus ficus (Signoret). Nevertheless, it is not possible to assure that this procedure is reliable for taxa that have not been sampled already and might be very closely related to the target species.

The obscure mealybug Pseudococcus viburni (Signoret) (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae) is one of the most important damaging mealybugs in vineyards worldwide and in South American temperate fruit production. The life history of P. viburni on 3 fruit species was studied under laboratory conditions. Leaves of apple Malus domestica (Borkh.), persimmon Diospyros kaki L., and grapevine Vitis labrusca L., were used as host plants. Mealybugs were able to develop, survive, and reproduce on all 3 hosts; however, persimmon and grape leaves were most suitable for P. viburni development and reproduction. The cumulative development time (nymph to adulthood) ranged from about 35 d on persimmon and grape leaves to 40.87 ± 0.53 d on apple leaves for females, and from 30.68 ± 0.44 d on persimmon to about 34 d on apple and grape leaves for males. The obscure mealybug exhibited biparental oviparous reproduction, and the fecundity significantly decreased on apple leaves from a mean of 88 eggs per female on persimmon and g... Resumen La cochinilla oscura, Pseudococcus viburni (Signoret) (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae,) es una de las cochinillas más perjudiciales en los viñedos de todo el mundo y en la producción sudamericana de frutas templadas. Se estudio la historia de vida de P. viburni sobre 3 especies de frutos bajo condiciones de laboratorio. Se usaron hojas de manzana Malus domestica (Borkh.), caqui Diospyros kaki L. y vid Vitis labrusca L., como plantas hospederas. Las cochinillas podrian desarrollarse, sobrevivir y reproducirse sobre los 3 hospederos; sin embargo, el caqui y las hojas de uva fueron las más adecuadas para el desarrollo y la reproducción de P. viburni. El tiempo de desarrollo acumulado (ninfa a la edad adulta) varió entre aproximadamente 35 dias en hojas de caqui y de uva a 40,87 ± 0,53 dias sobre hojas de manzana para las hembras y de 30,68 ± 0,44 d en hojas de caqui a aproximadamente 34 dias en hojas de manzana y de uva para los machos. La cochinilla oscura exhibió la reproducción biparental ovipara y la ...

The parasitism capacity of Trichogramma pretiosum Riley strain bonagota on Bonagota salubricola (Meyrick) eggs was studied under the temperatures of 18, 20, 22, 25, 28, 30 and 32 degrees C. The number of days with parasitism, accumulated parasitism, total number of eggs parasitized per female and parasitoid longevity was evaluated. In the first 24h, parasitism ranged from 1.6 (32 degrees C) to 8.8 (22 degrees C) eggs of B. salubricola. Accumulated egg parasitism of B. salubricola reached 80% in 1st to 4th day at 20 degrees C to 32 degrees C, respectively, and in the 7th day at 18 degrees C. Temperatures from 18 degrees C to 22 degrees C were the best suited for the total eggs parasitized for female, resulting in 35.4 and 24.6 eggs/male respectively. T. pretiosum female longevity ranged from 7.8 to 2.5 days, at 18 degrees C and 32 degrees C, respectively. The results showed that T. pretiosum strain bonagota is better adapted to temperatures from 18 degrees C to 22 degrees C.

As cochonilhas-com-escudo (Hemiptera, Diaspididae) têm causado prejuízos significativos à cultura da videira no Rio Grande do Sul, principalmente em Vitis labrusca L. da cv. Niágara. No período de setembro de 2009 a outubro de 2011, foi realizado um inventário das espécies de Diaspididae ocorrentes no tronco das videiras e dos parasitoides associados. Foram avaliadas 32 propriedades localizadas nos municípios de Bento Gonçalves, Caxias do Sul, Flores da Cunha e Sarandi-RS. A espécie mais frequente e abundante foi Hemiberlesia lataniae (Signoret, 1869). Melanaspis arnaldoi (Costa Lima, 1924) e Pseudaonidia marquesi Costa Lima, 1924 foram registradas pela primeira vez em V. labrusca. Todas as espécies de cochonilhas apresentaram perfurações nos escudos indicando níveis de parasitismo natural que variaram de 11,3 a 76,5% para H. lataniae, de 9 a 58,8% para M. arnaldoi e de 3,4 a 22,2% para P. marquesi. As seguintes associações entre parasitoides e cochonilhas foram encontradas: Encarsia sp. (Aphelinidae), Plagiomerus sp. (Encyrtidae), Amitus sp. (Platygastridae) e o hiperparasitoide Chartocerus sp. (Signiphoridae) a H. lataniae; Homalopoda sp. (Encyrtidae) a P. marquesi e Chartocerus sp. a M. arnaldoi. Amitus sp., Homalopoda sp. e Chartocerus sp. foram associados pela primeira vez com estes diaspidídeos.

The Anastrepha fraterculus (Wiedemann) (Diptera: Tephritidae) is the main pest of fruit trees grown in temperate climates in the southern region of Brazil. The objective of this work was to evaluate the efficiency of the major commercial food lures used in Brazil for trapping and monitoring of A. fraterculus in plum, pear, and feijoa orchards. The assessed lures were hydrolyzed proteins of animal origin (CeraTrap) and plant origin (BioAnastrepha), torula yeast + borax (Torula), and grape juice. Response variables included the rate of adult capture (flies per trap per day, FTD) and the percentage of females captured. We also evaluated the number of times the weekly capture rate exceeded the traditional threshold of 0.5 FTD for each lure. Traps baited with grape juice, currently used for monitoring A. fraterculus in Southern Brazil, captured fewer adults and a lower percentage of females compared with the other lures. CeraTrap trapped a greater number of A. fraterculus adults and, in some cases, a lower percentage of females compared with the other lures in pears. Traps baited with CeraTrap had greater capture rates (FTD), particularly during the stages of fruit maturation and harvest, and even in years with low population density of A. fraterculus, thus demonstrating greater sensitivity in the detection of this pest. These results show that, in order to detect and monitor the presence of A. fraterculus in plum, feijoa, and pear crops, protein-based lures are superior to grape juice, especially the animal protein CeraTrap.

The objective of this work was to assess the lethal concentration and lethal time (LC and LT) of spinosad and spinetoram, combined with different food lures, and their residual effects on South American fruit fly (Anastrepha fraterculus). The toxic baits were offered in eight concentrations (2, 6, 14, 35, 84, 204, 495, and 1,200 mg L^-1), combined with the following food lures: 7% sugarcane molasses, 3% Biofruit, 1.5% CeraTrap, 1.25% Flyral, 3% Samaritá Bait, and 3% Samaritá Tradicional; diluted food lures in water were used as controls. The residual effect of the formulations at 96 mg L^-1 concentration were evaluated for 21 days and were compared with that of the commercial bait Success 0.02 CB. Both insecticides were toxic to adults of A. fraterculus, and mortality varied with the food lure used. The LC₅₀and LT₅₀ranged from 15.19 to 318.86 mg L^-1and from 11.43 to 85.93 hours, respectively. Spinosad was 2 to 36 times as toxic as spinetoram when combined with different hydrolyzed proteins. Toxic baits formulated with spinosad and spinetoram (96 mg L^-1) caused mortality equivalent to the one by Success 0.02 CB (90.2%), when assessed on the day of application. Toxic baits formulated with 3% Biofruit + spinosad and 3% Samaritá Bait + spinetoram are effective for managingA. fraterculusand provide up to seven days of residual effect in the absence of rain; however, only Success 0.02 CB caused more than 80% mortality for up to 21 days.