New data on quarantine pests and pests of the EPPO Alert List
By searching through the literature, the EPPO Secretariat has extracted the following new data concerning quarantine pests and pests included (or formerly included) on the EPPO Alert List and indicated in bold the situation of the pest concerned using the terms of ISPM no. 8.
- New records
Diaporthe vaccinii (EPPO A2 List) has been detected in Shandong province causing twig blight of blueberry (Vaccinium spp.). This is the first time that this fungus is reported from China (Yue et al., 2013). Present, only in some areas (Shandong province).
During surveillance activities carried out by the NPPO of Mexico, the shot hole borer Euwallacea fornicatus sensu lato and its symbiont fungi Fusarium euwallaceae (both EPPO A1 List) have been detected in urban areas of the municipality of Tijuana, state of
Baja California. Both organisms are considered as quarantine pests, actionable, transitory and under eradication in Mexico (NAPPO, 2017).
In Spain, Gnomoniopsis smithogilvyi (=G. castaneae) has been detected for the first time. In November 2016, samples (branches) were collected from Castanea sativa × C. crenata plants showing bark canker symptoms in a nursery in Asturias. Laboratory studies (morphological, molecular and pathogenicity tests) confirmed the presence of the fungus (Trapiello et al., 2018). Present, only in some areas (found in one nursery in Asturias).
Little cherry virus 1 (Velarivirus, LChV1 – EU Annexes) has recently been detected in Chile. LChV1 was detected in 4 samples of sweet cherry (Prunus avium) which had been collected during a survey conducted from 2015 to 2016 in the main cherry-producing regions. Further investigations are needed to assess the prevalence of LChV-1 among Prunus spp. in Chile (Fiore et al., 2018). Present, few occurrences (detected in 4 samples).
In April 2014, symptoms of citrus black spot were observed in an orange (Citrus sinensis cv. Valencia) orchard in Bembe, Uíge province, Angola. The disease incidence reached 47%. Symptomatic fruit were collected and tested (morphological, molecular and pathogenicity tests). Results confirmed the occurrence of Phyllosticta citricarpa (EPPO A1 List) in diseased oranges. It is noted that further studies are needed to better understand the geographical distribution, population structure and impact of P. citricarpa in Angola (Bassimba et al., 2018). Present, only in some areas (1 orange orchard in Uíge province).
- Detailed records
Grapevine red blotch virus (Grablovirus, GRBV – EPPO Alert List) occurs in Ohio, USA. During studies conducted from 2012 to 2015 in 40 vineyards, GRBV was detected in 19 samples (out of 140) collected from 6 different vineyards with various Vitis vinifera varieties. Further investigations will be carried out to assess the impact of GRBV on Ohio wine production. (Yao et al., 2018).
In Italy, Tomato leaf curl New Delhi virus (EPPO Alert List) was found associated with a severe mosaic of pumpkin (Cucurbita moschata cv. Lunga di Napoli) during a survey carried out in 2016 in Campania region. The disease was observed in 3 fields in the municipalities of Castel Volturno and Giugliano. Affected plants showed stunting, severe foliar yellow mosaic, and produced fewer flowers and fruits. The insect vector, Bemisia tabaci, was also present in all diseased fields (Parrella et al., 2018).
- Host plants
During surveys on phytoplasma diseases of sweet and sour cherries (Prunus avium, P. cerasus) conducted in the Czech Republic during 2014-2015, ‘Candidatus Phytoplasma mali’ (EPPO A2 List) and ‘Ca. P. asteris’ were detected in symptomatic trees. ‘Ca. P. mali’ was detected in both P. avium and P. cerasus. Affected trees showed symptoms of dieback, shortened internodes and dwarfing, yellowing and premature leaf fall, as well as bunches of small leaves and blossoms growing on old branches and/or on the apical parts of defoliated branches (Fránová et al., 2018).
In July 2016, Meloidogyne enterolobii (EPPO A2 List) was found in a commercial field of ginger (Zingiber officinale) in Longhai county, Fujian province, China. Infested plants, showed extensive root galls (Xiao et al., 2018).
- New pests and taxonomy
A new species of gall midge damaging flower buds of Alstroemeria spp., Contarinia jongi (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae), has recently been described. This new gall midge has been observed on glasshouse Alstroemeria plants in Australia (Queensland, South Australia) and the Netherlands. Infested buds are deformed and do not produce flowers (Kolesik et al., 2017).
A new root-knot species, Meloidogyne aberrans sp. nov., has recently been described from kiwifruit (Actinidia chinensis) in Guizhou province, China. Affected plants displayed numerous root galls, reduced plant growth and fruit size. Observations have showed that M. aberrans also induced the formation of multinucleate giant cells in plant tissues (Tao et al., 2017).
A new virus of Capsicum annuum, tentatively called Pepper leafroll chlorosis virus (Polerovirus, PeLRCV) has recently been described. Affected plants showed upward leafroll and interveinal yellowing, as well as malformed fruits. Transmission studies have showed that PeLRCV can be transmitted by Aphis gossypii (Kamran et al., 2018)
Sources
Bassimba DDM, Nzambi N, Paixão MIS, Katula IG, Vicent A (2018) First report of citrus black spot caused by Phyllosticta citricarpa in Angola. Plant Disease 102(3), p 683.
Fiore N, Fernández C, Quiroga N, Pino AM, Rivera L, Sagredo K, Zamorano A (2018) First report of Little cherry virus 1 in Chile. Plant Disease 102(3), p 689.
Fránová J, Lenz O, Přibylová J, Špak J, Koloniuk I, Suchá J, Paprštein F (2018) ‘Candidatus Phytoplasma asteris’ and ‘Candidatus Phytoplasma mali’ strains infecting sweet and sour cherry in the Czech Republic. Journal of Phytopathology 166, 59–66. https://doi.org/10.1111/jph.12661
Kamran A, Lotos L, Amer MA, Al-Saleh MA, Alshahwan IM, Shakeel MT, Ahmad MH, Umar M, Katis NI (2018) Characterization of Pepper leafroll chlorosis virus, a new Polerovirus causing yellowing disease of bell pepper in Saudi Arabia. Plant Disease 102(2), 318-326.
Kolesik P, Baker G, Hill K, Manners AG, Dijkstra E (2017) New species of gall midge (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae) damaging flower buds of ornamental Alstroemeria plants. Austral Entomology (abst.). https://doi.org/10.1111/aen.12276
NAPPO Phytosanitary Pest Alert System. Official Pest Reports. Mexico (2017-10-18) Update on the shot hole borer Euwallacea sp. and its symbiont fungi Fusarium euwallaceae in Mexico. https://pestalert.org/oprDetail.cfm?oprID=730
Parrella G, Troiano E, Formisano G, Accotto GP, Giorgini M (2018) First report of Tomato leaf curl New Delhi virus associated with severe mosaic of pumpkin in Italy. Plant Disease 102(2), 459-460.
Tao Y, Xu CL, Yuan CF, Wang HH, Lin BR, Zhuo K, Liao, JL (2017) Meloidogyne aberrans sp. nov. (Nematoda: Meloidogynidae), a new root-knot nematode parasitizing kiwifruit in China. PLoS ONE 12(8), e0182627. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0182627
Trapiello E, Feito I, González AJ (2018) First report of Gnomoniopsis castaneae causing canker on hybrid plants of Castanea sativa × C. crenata in Spain. Plant Disease 102(in press). https://doi.org/10.1094/PDIS-12-17-1874-PDN
Xiao S, Hou XY, Cheng M, Deng MX, Cheng X, Liu GK (2018) First report of Meloidogyne enterolobii on ginger (Zingiber officinale) in China. Plant Disease 102(3), p 684.
Yao XL, Han J, Domier LL, Qu F, Lewis Ivey ML (2018) First report of Grapevine red blotch virus in Ohio vineyards. Plant Disease 102(2), p 463.
Yue QH, Zhao HH, Liang C, Li XD (2013) [The pathogen causing Phomopsis twig blight of blueberry]. Mycosystema 32(6), 959-966 (in Chinese).