Nipaecoccus viridis (Newstead)

MOGHADDAM, MASUMEH & WATSON, GILLIAN W., 2022, The Scale Insects Of Iran (Hemiptera: Coccomorpha) Part 2 The Mealybugs (Pseudococcidae And Rhizoecidae) And Putoidae, Zootaxa 5126 (1), pp. 1-169 : 70-72

Nipaecoccus viridis (Newstead)

( Fig. 27 , Plate 1 G , distribution map Fig. 68 B )

Dactylopius viridis Newstead, 1894: 5 . Dactylopius vastator Maskell, 1895: 65 . Dactylopius perniciosus Newstead & Willcocks, 1910: 138 . Ripersia theae Rutherford, 1915: 111 . Pseudococcus solitarius Brain, 1915: 104 . Pseudococcus perniciosus Newstead, 1920: 179 . Pseudococcus filamentosus corymbatus Green, 1922: 379 . Trionymus sericeus James, 1936: 203 .

Field characteristics: Found on fast-growing tissues like new growth, fruit, at branch junctions, and underneath calyx sepals and fruit buttons. Young adult female oval, 2.5‒4.0 mm long, becoming very rotund with maturity; body coated with thick mealy wax that is white initially but may turn pale yellow with age; body contents dark green / purple / brown-purple. A large hemispherical ovisac of loose, sticky, elastic white wax filaments is produced from under the abdomen, and may contain several hundred violet eggs; ovisac material may cover body.

Microscopic diagnosis: Slide-mounted adult female broadly oval. Anal lobes moderately developed. Antennae each usually with 7 segments. Legs well developed; hind leg with translucent pores on ventral and dorsal surfaces of coxa and tibia; tarsal digitules knobbed at tip and longer thank claw. Cerarii usually numbering 4–6 pairs. Anal lobe cerarii each with 2 lanceolate setae, an auxiliary seta and few trilocular pores, all situated on a weakly sclerotized area. Cerarii not recognizable on head and prothorax, represented by lanceolate setae, similar to those in posterior cerarii, dispersed around margin. Circulus circular to quadrate, not divided by an intersegmental line. Ostioles moderately developed.

Dorsum with lanceolate setae, similar to cerarian setae but smaller, of various sizes. Multilocular disc pores absent. Trilocular pores evenly distributed, some associated with setal collars. Discoidal pores sparse. Oral collar ducts of 2 sizes present, mixed across segments.

Venter with flagellate setae. Multilocular disc pores each with 10 loculi, numerous, present posterior to vulva, in median rows at anterior and posterior edges of abdominal segments, and around margins as far forwards as about mesothorax. Trilocular pores evenly distributed. Discoidal pores sparse. Oral collar ducts of 2 sizes: large type abundant around margins as forwards as mesothorax; small type present medially across thoracic and abdominal segments and mingling with large-type ducts around margins.

Distribution: Nipaeacoccus viridis is widespread in the tropical and subtropical parts of the world ( García Morales et al. 2016); in Iran, it is found in Bushehr, Fars, Hormozgan, Kerman, Khouzestan, Mazandaran and Sistan & Balouchestan provinces ( Moghaddam 2013b).

Host-plants: The species has been recorded on host-plants in 144 genera belonging to 51 families ( García Morales et al. 2016).In Iran, it has been recorded on Acanthaceae : Avicennia marina ; Apocynaceae : Nerium oleander ; Fabaceae : Prosopis cineraria , P. spicigera ; Lythraceae : Punica granatum ; Moraceae : Morus alba ; Rhamnaceae : Ziziphus spina-christi ; Rutaceae : Citrus sinensis and Citrus sp. ; Tamaricaceae : Tamarix sp. ; Ulmaceae : Ulmus sp. ; and Vitaceae : Vitis vinifera ( Moghaddam 2013b) .

Economic importance: Nipaecoccus viridis attacks numerous plant species including citrus, often causing considerable damage. It has been recorded as an important agricultural pest in the south of Iran.

Natural enemies: Multiple natural enemies of N. viridis have been recorded from Iran in the literature. Its predators include Diptera , Cecidomyiidae : Dicrodiplosis manihoti Harris ; Neuroptera , Chrysopidae : Wesmaelius sp. ; Coleoptera , Coccinellidae : Exochomus sp. , Hyperaspis polita Weise , which particularly feeds on the eggs rather than adult mealybugs (Asadeh & Mossadegh 1393b), Hyperaspis sp. ; Nephus arcuatus Kapur , an important predator of N. viridis in citrus orchards in southwestern Iran, preferring to attack the eggs ( Farhadi et al. 2019), Nephus includens (Boheman) and Scymnus sp. ( Asadeh & Mossadegh 1993b; Fallahzadeh et al. 2008; Zakerin et al. 2009; Fallahzadeh et al. 2013; Farhadi et al. 2019).

Parasitoid wasps attacking N. viridis in Iran include: Hymenoptera , Encyrtidae : Ageniaspis fuscicollis (Dalman) ; Anagyrus aligarhensis Agarwal &Alam , An. dactylopii (Howard) , An. mirzai Agarwal & Alam , and An. pseudococci (Girault) ; Homalotylus albiclavatus (Agarwal) ; Leptomastidea alleni (Noyes & Hayat) ; Leptomastix longicornis Khan & Shafee ; and Prochiloneurus indicus Shafee, Alam & Agarwal ( Khalaf & Aberoumand 1986; Asadeh & Mossadegh 1993b; Novin 2000; Fallahzadeh et al. 2008; and Fallahzadeh et al. 2013).

Comments: The accompanying illustration is reproduced from Williams (2004), page 450, Fig. 200, with kind permission from the author and the Trustees of the Natural History Museum, London, U.K.

Genus PARACOCCUS Ezzat & McConnell

Paracoccus Ezzat & McConnell, 1956: 37 . Type species: Pseudococcus burnerae Brain by original designation. Gossypina Salazar, 1972: 293 .

Principal characters: Slide-mounted adult female usually broadly oval. Anal lobe usually developed, each with a ventral anal lobe bar either complete (extending from base of apical seta) or partial (extending from bar seta). Antennae each with 8 segments. Legs well developed, claw without a denticle; hind leg with translucent pores usually present on coxa and tibia. Cerarii numbering up to 18 pairs, each cerarius containing 2 conical setae, except some on head and thorax each with 3 or 4 setae; auxiliary setae absent except in anal lobe cerarii. Circulus present or absent. Ostioles present. Multilocular disc pores present, at least on venter. Trilocular pores present. Oral rim tubular ducts present on dorsum and sometimes on venter. Oral collar tubular ducts present.

Comments: Worldwide, 92 species are included in Paracoccus ( García Morales et al. 2016) but these are probably not all congeneric and the genus is in need of revision. The positions of the oral rim ducts are important in distinguishing between the species. Two species are known from Iran ( Moghaddam 2013a; Moghaddam & Esfandiari 2014).

Key to species of Paracoccus in Iran

1(0) Venter of abdominal segments with multilocular disc pores reaching to margins; head without oral rim tubular duct posterior to each frontal cerarius (C 1); without any oral rim ducts on dorsal midline. ............................ ficus Moghaddam

- Venter of abdominal segments with multilocular disc pores not reaching to margins; head with oral rim duct posterior to each frontal cerarius (C 1); with 1 or 2 oral rim ducts on dorsal midline ................................... burnerae (Brain)

Figures

PLATE 1. A, B. Ceroputo pilosellae Šulc; C, D. Dysmicoccus angustifrons (Hall); E. Erimococcus kimmericus

FIGURE 27. Adult female of Nipaecoccus viridis (Newstead). © The Trustees of the Natural History Museum, London, U.K.

FIGURE 68. Maps of species distributions in Iran. A. Mirococcus inermis (Hall); B. Nipaecoccus viridis (Newstead); C. Paracoccus burnerae (Brain); D. Paracoccus ficus Moghaddam; E. Peliococcopsis priesneri (Laing); F. Peliococcus chersonensis (Kiritshenko); G. Peliococcus marrubii (Kiritshenko); H. Peliococcus turanicus (Kiritshenko); I. Pelionella grassiana (Goux); J. Phenacoccus aceris (Signoret); K. Phenacoccus arthrophyti Archangelskaya; L. Phenacoccus betae Moghaddam.