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
‘Candidatus Phytoplasma solani’ (EPPO A2 List) is reported for the first time from Japan. In June 2017, Capsicum annuum plants showing chlorosis on leaves and fruit were observed in Susaki city (Kochi Prefecture, Shikoku). The identity of the pathogen was confirmed by molecular methods (Shimomoto et al., 2019). Present, only in some areas (first found in 2017 in Kochi Prefecture).
During a survey conducted from 2017 to 2019 in the Western part of Burkina Faso, adult specimens of Ceratitis rosa (Diptera: Tephritidae – EPPO A1 List) were trapped in natural areas and in one agricultural field (Zida et al., 2020). Present, no details.
The NPPO of Finland recently informed the EPPO Secretariat of the first record of Drosophila suzukii (Diptera: Tephritidae – EPPO A2 List) on its territory. It was trapped in a field in Pohjois-Savo in July 2019. The pest status of Drosophila suzukii in Finland is officially declared as: Present.
Sweet potato chlorotic stunt virus (Crinivirus, SPCSV, EU Annexes) is first reported from Taiwan on sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas) (Cheng et al., 2020). Present, no details.
- Detailed records
During a survey conducted in February 2019 in eucalyptus plantations in the municipality of Dom Eliseu, Pará state, Brazil, Ralstonia pseudosolanacearum (EPPO A2 List) was detected in Eucalyptus urophylla trees. Affected trees were showing wilt symptoms and discoloration of internal tissue (Freitas et al., 2020).
In Russia, Ips amitinus (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae – EU Annexes) occurs in the European part (Central Russia: Bryansk, Leningrad, Pskov – Northern Russia: Karelia, Novgorod, Murmansk), with a tendency for range expansion (Økland et al., 2019), and it has recently reached the north of the Kola Peninsula and the Arkhangelsk province (Northern Russia). In addition, its presence was confirmed in Western Siberia in 2019, although symptoms had already been noticed in 2014. Abundant populations of I. amitinus were observed on Pinus sibirica in pine forests near human settlements in Tomsk and Kemerovo provinces, and the pest was also sporadically found on Picea obovata (Kerchev et al., 2019).
- Host plants
In India, during surveys conducted in the Kashmir valley (Jammu and Kashmir), quince (Cydonia oblonga) trees were found to be infested by Bactrocera dorsalis (Diptera: Tephritidae – EPPO A1 List). The host suitability of C. oblonga was verified by cage experiments, and it was shown that adult B. dorsalis could emerge from harvested quince fruit (Akbar et al., 2019).
In Brazil, Gymnandrosoma aurantianum (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae - EPPO Alert List) has been observed feeding on pecan (Carya illinoinensis) in two orchards, one in the municipality of Uraí (Paraná) and the other in the municipality of Chapada (Rio Grande do Sul). Larvae damaged pecan fruit by perforating the husk (pericarp) and making deep galleries. Frass could also be observed between the pericarp and endocarp, but damage did not reach the endocarp (Nava et al., 2020).
In Indonesia, Xanthomonas perforans (EPPO A2 List) causes leaf blight on nursery plants and young trees of Eucalyptus pellita. This is the first report of X. perforans causing a leaf disease on a woody host (Bophela et al., 2019).
- New pests
During a study on begomoviruses conducted in Uganda in March 2015, symptomatic leaf samples were collected from 6 wild and cultivated plants of Ocimum gratissimum (African basil) from different sites in the Central and Western regions of the country. As a result, 3 new bipartite begomoviruses were characterized and tentatively called: Ocimum yellow vein virus (OcYVV), Ocimum mosaic virus (OcMV), and Ocimum golden mosaic virus (OcGMV). It is noted that more work is needed to determine the geographical distribution of these new begomoviruses in Africa, and their potential impact on Ocimum species (Mollel et al., 2020).
In Austria, viroid-like symptoms were observed on apple fruit (Malus domestica cv. Ilzer Rose) in 2016 in southern Burgenland. Molecular studies, including the use of next-generation sequencing revealed the presence of a new viroid, belonging to the genus Apscaviroid, which was tentatively called ‘apple chlorotic fruit spot viroid’ (Leichtfried et al., 2019).
Sources
Akbar SA, Nabi SU, Mansoor S, Khan KA (2019) Morpho-molecular identification and a new host report of Bactrocera dorsalis (Hendel) from the Kashmir valley (India). International Journal of Tropical Insect Science. https://doi.org/10.1007/s42690-019-00083-w
Bophela KN, Venter SN, Wingfield MJ, Duran A, Tarigan M, Coutinho TA (2019) Xanthomonas perforans: a tomato and pepper pathogen associated with bacterial blight and dieback of Eucalyptus pellita seedlings in Indonesia. Australasian Plant Pathology 48, 543–551. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13313-019-00657-9
Cheng YH, Wang YC, Wang LY, Huang LH, Chen TC (2020) First report of Sweet potato chlorotic stunt virus infecting sweetpotato in Taiwan. Plant Disease. https://doi.org/10.1094/PDIS-01-20-0122-PDN
Freitas RG, Hermenegildo PS, Guimarães LMS, Zauza EAV, Badel JL, Alfenas AC (2020) Detection and characterization of Ralstonia pseudosolanacearum infecting Eucalyptus sp. in Brazil. Forest Pathology: e12593. https://doi.org/10.1111/efp.12593
Kerchev IA, Mandelshtam MY, Krivets SA, Ilinsky YY (2019) Small spruce bark beetle Ips amitinus (Eichhoff, 1872) (Coleoptera, Curculionidae: Scolytinae): a new alien species in West Siberia. Entomological Review 99, 639–644. https://doi.org/10.1134/S0013873819050075
Leichtfried T, Dobrovolny S, Reisenzein H, Steinkellner S, Gottsberger RA (2019) Apple chlorotic fruit spot viroid: a putative new pathogenic viroid on apple characterized by next-generation sequencing. Archives of Virology 164, 3137-3140. https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007%2Fs00705-019-04420-9.pdf
Mollel H G, Ndunguru J, Sseruwagi P, Alicai T, Colvin J, Navas-Castillo J, Fiallo-Olivé E (2020) African basil (Ocimum gratissimum) is a reservoir of divergent begomoviruses in Uganda. Plant Disease 104(3), 853-859. https://doi.org/10.1094/PDIS-08-19-1675-RE
Nava DE, Sturza VS, Martins CR (2020) First report of Gymnandrosoma aurantianum (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) in pecan in Brazil. Florida Entomologist 103(1), 130-131. https://doi.org/10.1653/024.103.0422
NPPO of Finland (2020-04).
Økland B, Flø D, Schroeder M, Zach P, Cocos D, Martikainen P, Siitonen J, Mandelshtam MY, Musolin D, Neuvonen S, Vakula J, Nikolov C, Lindelöw A, Voolma K (2019) Range expansion of the small spruce bark beetle Ips amitinus: a newcomer in northern Europe. Agricultural and Forest Entomology, 13 pp. https://doi.org/10.1111/afe.12331
Shimomoto Y, Ikeda K, Asahina Y, Yano K, Oka M, Oki T, Yamasaki J, Takeuchi S, Morita Y (2019) First report of ‘Candidatus Phytoplasma solani’ associated with pepper chlorosis of sweet pepper, Capsicum annuum L., in Japan. Journal of General Plant Pathology. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10327-019-00889-z
Zida I, Nacro S, Dabiré R, Somda I (2020) Seasonal abundance and diversity of fruit flies (Diptera: Tephritidae) in three types of plant formations in western Burkina Faso, West Africa. Annals of the Entomological Society of America. https://doi.org/10.1093/aesa/saaa004 (via PestLens).