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 8.
- New records
Beet necrotic yellow vein virus (Benyvirus, EPPO A2 List – rhizomania) is reported for the first time from Tunisia. The virus was detected in a commercial beet (Beta vulgaris) field located in Bousalem, Jendouba Governorate (Nahdi et al., 2022). Present, no details.
Erysiphe corylacearum is reported for the first time in Israel. In May 2022, powdery mildew symptoms were observed on hazelnut (Corylus avellana) plants in several locations in the northern Golan region: a truffle plantation in Ein-Zivan, gardens in Merom-Golan, and a garden adjacent to the ‘Pri-Beresheet’ packing house (Gur, 2024).
Nysius huttoni (Hemiptera: Lygaeidae – formerly EPPO Alert List) is reported for the first time from Ireland. The first specimens were found in April 2023 in county Carlow (DAFM, 2024).
Phytophthora macrochlamydospora is reported for the first time in Brazil causing tree decline in Pinus taeda. This disease has been observed since 2014 in some plantations in Santa Catarina and Paraná states. Affected P. taeda trees showed needle chlorosis and shortening, reduced plant growth, reduced volume of fine roots and absence of ectomycorrhiza. It is noted that in Brazil, the presence of this pathogen had been detected earlier in irrigation water from streams. P. macrochlamydospora had initially been reported to cause root and stem rot in soybean (Glycine max) in Australia and the USA (Brumat et al., 2023).
Spodoptera frugiperda (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae – EPPO A2 List) occurs in Lebanon. Its presence was recorded (no further details) during studies conducted in 2021 in maize fields on beneficial insects associated with the pest (Moussa, 2022). Present, no details.
- Detailed records
In China, Heterodera zeae (formerly EPPO Alert List) was first found in Guanxi province in a maize (Zea mays) field in 2015 (EPPO RS 2017/145). More recently, it was also found in maize fields in the provinces of Henan (Cui et al., 2020) and Sichuan (Xu et al., 2024).
In the USA, Stenocarpella macrospora (EPPO A2 List) occurs in Kentucky. During surveys conducted in maize fields in 2019 and 2020, both S. macrospora and S. maydis were detected. S. macrospora was identified in 33.8% of inspected ears in 2019 and 36.9% in 2020. S. maydis was confirmed in 66.2% of inspected ears in 2019 and 63.1% in 2020 (Anderson and Wise, 2024).
In Russia, Stephanitis pyrioides (Heteroptera: Tingidae – formerly EPPO Alert List) was found in July 2020 on Rhododendron x hybridum in a single location in Sochi (Krasnodar). It is suspected that it was introduced with imports of infested plants for planting from Italy. This is the first time that S. pyrioides is reported from the European part of Russia, previously it was only recorded in the Far East (Zhuravleva et al., 2023).
- Denied record
The presence of Polygraphus proximus (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae) in Kazakhstan had been reported during scientific studies (EPPO RS 2024/006). However, the NPPO of Kazakhstan recently informed the EPPO Secretariat that annual official surveys are conducted for this quarantine pest and have not detected it. It is planned to inspect forest plantations in the Eastern regions of Kazakhstan in 2024. The NPPO of Kazakhstan considers that P. proximus is absent from its territory (NPPO of Kazakhstan, 2024).
- Host plants
During a survey conducted in an outdoor nursery in York (United Kingdom), the nematode Aphelenchoides fragariae (EU RNQP) was detected in Darmera peltata (Saxifragaceae). Affected plants showed interveinal leaf chlorosis, necrosis and malformation. D. peltata is grown for ornamental purposes, often near ponds as it prefers moist soils (Singh et al., 2024).
Sources
Anderson NR, Wise KA (2024) Prevalence of Stenocarpella maydis and Stenocarpella macrospora causing Diplodia ear rot in Kentucky. Plant Health Progress 25(1), 27-32.
Brumat ACL, Auer CG, Tessmann DJ, Duarte HSS, dos Santos ÁF (2023) First report of Phytophthora macrochlamydospora associated with tree decline in Pinus taeda in Brazil. Forest Pathology 53, e12840. https://doi.org/10.1111/efp.12840
Cui J, Zhou B, Jiao Y, Lv Y, Lu J, Meng H, Jiang S (2020) First report of Heterodera zeae on maize (Zea mays) in Henan province, China. Plant Disease 107(7), p 2031. https://doi.org/10.1094/PDIS-02-20-0227-PDN
DAFM. Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine of Ireland. Plant Pest Factsheet. Nysius huttoni. Wheat bug. https://assets.gov.ie/278017/7606b731-01d5-4276-9e52-e859c102b54d.pdf (last accessed in 2024-04).
Gur L (2024) Occurrence of powdery mildew caused by Erysiphe corylacearum on hazelnuts in Israel. Plant Disease (early view). https://doi.org/10.1094/PDIS-11-23-2386-PDN
Moussa Z (2022) Beneficial insects associated with fall army worm in Lebanon. Abstract of a paper presented at the 13th Arab Congress of Plant Protection (Hammamet, TN, 2022-10-16/21).
Nahdi S, Khemissi A, Souissi R, Abou Kubaa R, Boukhris-Bouhachem (2022) First survey of beet viruses and their relative vectors on beet (Beta vulgaris) species in Tunisia. Abstract of a paper presented at the 13th Arab Congress of Plant Protection (Hammamet, TN, 2022-10-16/21).
NPPO of Kazakhstan (2024-04).
Rodriguez SD, Allan C, Discua Duarte S, Matzkin LM, Palumbo J, Carrière Y (2024) First report of tomato spotted wilt virus infecting lettuce in Yuma, Arizona. Plant Disease 108(3), 823. https://doi.org/10.1094/PDIS-04-23-0629-PDN
Singh PR, Correia M, Orlando V, Macey C, Rotifa J, Kershaw Z, Dawes J, Lawson R (2024) First report of Aphelenchoides fragariae infecting the ornamental plant Darmera peltata in the United Kingdom. New Disease Reports 49, e12267. https://doi.org/10.1002/ndr2.12267
Xu X, Li R, Ren H, Zhou Y, Jiang S, Tang J, Cui J (2024) First report of the maize cyst nematode Heterodera zeae in Sichuan province of Southwest China. Plant Disease 108(3), 820. https://doi.org/10.1094/PDIS-11-23-2469-PDN
Zhuravleva EN, Golub VB, Kirichenko NI, Shoshina EI, Soboleva VA, Karpun NN, Musolin DL (2023) First record of the azalea lace bug Stephanitis pyrioides (Scott, 1874) (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Tingidae) in the European part of Russia: Molecular genetics and taxonomy of an alien pest. EPPO Bulletin 53(3), 643–651.