First report of Aleurocanthus spiniferus in the Czech Republic
The NPPO of the Czech Republic recently informed the EPPO Secretariat of the first official report of Aleurocanthus spiniferus (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae – EPPO A2 List) on its territory. Trace forward investigations related to an outbreak in Italy identified an infested consignment of 36 potted plants of Citrofortunella microcarpa that had been delivered to two operators in the region of Zlín. Out of the 36 plants, 32 had already been sold to final users, so only 4 could be inspected. Three plants in one company were found infested and were destroyed. The plant present on the other company was free from the pest.
A monitoring survey with sticky traps is being carried out for 80 days in the greenhouse where the infested plants were found, to ensure that the pest is absent.
The pest status of Aleurocanthus spiniferus in the Czech Republic is officially declared as: Transient, actionable, under surveillance.
Sources
NPPO of the Czech Republic (2022-05).