Ricania speculum found in Italy: first record in the EPPO region
In Italy, the presence of Ricania speculum (Hemiptera: Ricaniidae) was confirmed in August 2014. Adults were collected on Citrus spp. in the province of La Spezia (Liguria region). Later in 2014, more specimens were found on several other host plants (Laurus nobilis, Prunus persica, Populus pyramidalis, Pyrus communis, Vitis) within a radius of about 15 km around the first finding (Rossi and Lucchi, 2015). According to other authors (Mazza et al., 2014), R. speculum has been observed in Genova and other localities of the Ligurian Riviera (e.g. Carasco, Casarza Ligure, Chiavari, Cogorno, Lavagna, Sestri Levante) since 2009, thus suggesting that this species might be more widespread than originally thought. R. speculum is an Asian planthopper which is known to occur at least in China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea Democratic Peoples’ Republic, Korea Republic, Malaysia, Philippines, Taiwan, and Vietnam. R. speculum is a polyphagous insect (sap feeder) which has been reported on Camellia oleifera, Camellia sinensis (tea), Ceiba pentandra (kapok), Citrus spp., Coffea spp. (coffee), Elaeis guineensis (oil palm), Glycine max (soybean), Gossypium (cotton), Luffa cylindrica, Pueraria montana (kudzu), Sorghum bicolor (millet), Tectona grandis (teak), and Theobroma cacao (cocoa). Although it is considered to be a minor pest in its area of origin, the past experience of the introduction of another exotic species, Metcalfa pruinosa (Hemiptera: Flatidae) advocates for careful monitoring of R. speculum.
Sources
Mazza G, Pennacchio F, Gargani E, Franceschini I, Roversi PF & Cianferoni F (2014) First report of Ricania speculum (Walker, 1851) in Europe (Hemiptera: Fulgoromorpha: Ricaniidae). Zootaxa 3861, 297–300.
Rossi E, Lucchi A (2015) The Asian planthopper Ricania speculum (Walker) (Homoptera: Ricaniidae) on several crops in Italy: a potential threat to the EPPO region? Bulletin OEPP/EPPO Bulletin 45(1), 119–122.