A new species of Dialeurodes Cockerell (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) on Schefflera Forst and Forst in Florida

Authors

G. S. Hodges, Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Gainesville, FL
J. W. Dooley, United States Department of Agriculture-APHIS-PPQ

Date of this Version

November 2007

Comments

Insecta Mundi, published by the Center for Systematic Entomology, is available online at http://centerforsystematicentomology.org/. Copyright © by Hodges and Dooley.

Abstract

Descriptions of pupal cases of Dialeurodes schefflerae, new species, as well as distribution records are presented. This species is known to occur in Florida, Hawaii and Puerto Rico appearing to feed only on species of Schefflera Forst and Forst. This restriction to plant hosts in the Asian genus Schefflera, along with its affinities with Dialeurodes agalmae Takahashi, Dialeurodes citri (Ashmead) and Dialeurodes kirkaldyi (Kotinsky), suggests it is an invasive species, probably endemic to the Asian region.