Planococcus citri (Risso)

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 : 107-109

Planococcus citri (Risso)

( Fig. 47 , Plate 2 E , distribution map Fig. 69 J )

Dorthesia citri Risso, 1813: 416 . Coccus tuliparum Bouché, 1844: 301 . Dactylopius alaterni Signoret, 1875a: 309 . Dactylopius cyperi Signoret, 1875a: 314 . Dactylopius robiniae Signoret, 1875a: 322 . Lecanium phyllococcus Ashmead, 1879: 160 . Dactylopius brevispinus Targioni Tozzetti, 1881: 137 . Dactylopius destructor Comstock, 1881: 342 . Dactylopius secretus Hempel, 1900: 387 . Phenacoccus spiriferus Hempel, 1900: 389 . Pseudococcus citri coleorum Marchal, 1908: 236 . Pseudococcus citri phenacocciformis Brain, 1915: 116 . Planococcoides cubanensis Ezzat & McConnell, 1956: 53 . Planococcus citricus Ezzat & McConnell, 1956: 69 . Planococcus cucurbitae Ezzat & McConnell, 1956: 71 .

Field characteristics: Normally found on aerial plant parts, but occasionally found on stored tubers. Body of adult female up to 3 mm long, yellow when newly moulted, peach-pink or yellowish or greenish pink when fully mature; coated with white powdery wax but often dorsal wax thinner in a narrow median longitudinal line, which looks darker; body with 18 short white wax projections around margins, these longest at posterior end. At maturity, a white cottony mass of ovisac wax is produced at the posterior end and becomes filled with eggs; each egg approximately 0.3 mm long, oval, glossy and light yellow.

Microscopic diagnosis: Slide-mounted adult female oval. Anal lobes well developed. Antennae usually each with 8 segments. Legs well developed; hind leg with translucent pores on coxa and tibia; tarsal digitules clubbed at tio and longer thank claw. Cerarii numbering 18 pairs, each cerarius containing 2 conical setae, except for preocular pair (C 2) each sometimes with 1‒3 conical setae. Circulus normally quadrate, divided by an intersegmental line. Ostioles well developed.

Dorsum with fairly short flagellate setae, the longest on abdominal segment VII no more than 35 µm long. Multilocular disc pores absent. Trilocular pores and minute discoidal pores scattered throughout, sometimes forming small clusters near midline on thorax and anterior abdominal segments. A few oral collar tubular ducts without apparent rims, larger than ventral ducts, occasionally present.

Venter with flagellate setae, longer than dorsal setae. Cisanal setae shorter than anal ring setae. Multilocular disc pores each with 10 loculi, present in rows across abdominal segment III and posterior segments. Trilocular pores evenly distributed. Discoidal pores sparse. Oral collar ducts of 2 sizes: small ducts present across median areas of abdominal segments, and larger ducts present around margins including head and thorax, and scattered in median area of thorax.

Distribution: Planococcus citri is known from 161 countries in all biogeographical Regions ( García Morales et al. 2016); in Iran, it has been recorded from Elborz, Fars, Gilan, Golestan, Kermanshah, Khorasan -e Razavi, Khouzestan, Markazi, Mazandaran and Tehran provinces ( Moghaddam 2013b).

Host-plants: This species has been recorded on host-plants in 240 genera belonging to 91 families ( García Morales et al. 2016). In Iran, it has been recorded on: Apocynaceae : Adenium obesum , Nerium oleander ; Arecaceae : Chamaecyparis lawsoniana , Chamaerops sp. ; Caryophyllaceae : Dianthus barbatus ; Crassulaceae : Crassula sp. ; Cupressaceae : Cupressus sp. ; Ebenaceae : Diospyros kaki ; Euphorbiaceae : Codiaeum variegatum , Euphorbia pulcherrima ; Dennstaedtiaceae : Pteridium aquilinum ; Moraceae : Ficus benjamina, F. carica , F. elastica , Morus alba ; Oleaceae : Forsythia intermedia , Fraxinus excelsior ; Platanaceae : Platanus orientalis ; Poaceae : Oryza sativa ; Rosaceae : Rosa sp. ; Rutaceae : Citrus bigaradia , C. sinensis ; Solanaceae : Solanum tuberosum ; Strelitziaceae : Strelitzia reginae ( Moghaddam 2013b) .

Economic importance: This is one of the major pest mealybugs in Iran, mainly damaging citrus and many ornamental plants in the North of the country, and in greenhouses in cold temperate regions.

Natural enemies: The following natural enemies have been recorded attacking P. citri in Iran: Hymenoptera : Encyrtidae : Anagyrus novickyi Hoffer , A. pseudococci (Girault) , Clausenia purpurea Ishii , Homalotylus quaylei Timberlake ( Ebrahimi 2014, Fallahzadeh & Japoshvili 2017); the mealybug predator, Crypolaemus montrouzieri Mulsant ( Coleoptera : Coccinellidae ) ( Ghorbanian et al. 2011).

Comments: The accompanying illustration is from Cox (1989), page 15, Fig. 5 , reproduced with the permission of the Trustees of the Natural History Museum, London, U.K.

Figures

PLATE 2. A. Phenacoccus aceris (Signoret); B. Phenacoccus bromi Moghaddam; C. Phenacoccus poae Moghaddam; D. Phenacoccus solenopsis Tinsley; E. Planococcus citri (Risso); F. Planococcus kraunhiae (Kuwana); G. Planococcus vovae (Nasonov); H. Pseudococcus comstocki (Kuwana).

FIGURE 5. Adult female of Artemicoccus poacearum Moghaddam & Watson sp. n.

FIGURE 47. Adult female of Planococcus citri (Risso). © The Trustees of the Natural History Museum, London, U.K.

FIGURE 69. Maps of species distributions in Iran. A. Phenacoccus bromi Moghaddam; B. Phenacoccus daganiae Bodenheimer; C. Phenacoccus hordei (Lindeman); D. Phenacoccus insularis Danzig; E. Phenacoccus poae Moghaddam; F. Phenacoccus pumilus Kiritshenko; G. Phenacoccus solani Ferris; H. Phenacoccus solenopsis Tinsley; I. Phenacoccus transcaucasicus Hadzibejli; J. Planococcus citri (Risso); K. Planococcus ficus (Signoret); L. Planococcus kraunhiae (Kuwana).