Incidence of Corythuca ciliata Say in Hungary
In April 1976, a plane tree pest, hitherto not established in Hungary, was observed by quarantine personnel.
Adults of Corythuca ciliata Say, which overwinter under the bark of plane trees (Platanus acerifolia Wild.) presumably entered the southern territories of County Somogy (Hungary) in 1975, from Croatia (Yugoslavia).
Sites where the pest was recorded are shown on the enclosed map.
The max. density of the overwintering adult population in the bark was 2-4 adults/dm2.
Studies on the biology of the pest and of its further spread have begun. Two generations developed in Hungary. Overwintering adults began to leave their hibernation sites at the end of April, when the average daily temperature was above 8 °C. Egg-laying started from 8 May, and swarming of larvae from 30 May.
Adults of the first generation appeared by the end of July. The development of the second generation lasted up to the middle of October. It was between 18 and 23 October that adults began overwintering en masse. Their population density significantly exceeded that observed per dm2 bark.
The pest was also found in 1977 in the county Bacs, near the Yugoslavian border at Kelebia.
In order to prevent its further spread, a control program was established on the basis of Yugoslavian experiences. The most effective insecticides proved to be dioxacarb formulations.
