First report of the biological control agent Encarsia smithi in Italy
Encarsia smithi (Hymenoptera: Aphelinidae) is a parasitoid species associated mainly with whiteflies of the genus Aleurocanthus. Indigenous to Asia, E. smithi is also present in South Africa where (as is also the case in Japan) it has been utilised as a classical biological agent against Aleurocanthus woglumi (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae, EPPO A1 List). Even though E. smithi has been considered to have potential as a pre-emptive biological control agent against A. woglumi in Europe, there have been no official releases. Between January 2024 and July 2025, as part of the Phytosanitary Surveillance Project of the Campania Region, inspections were conducted on citrus species in orchards and urban areas with the aim of monitoring the spread of Aleurocanthus spiniferus (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae, EPPO A2 pest), a pest native to South-East Asia and present in several EPPO countries. In Italy, it was first recorded in the Puglia region in 2008 (EPPO RS 2008/092) and it has since expanded its distribution (EPPO RS 2022/103, EPPO RS 2025/141). During these surveys, Eretmocerus iulii (Hymenoptera: Aphelinidae) was recorded as the primary parasitoid of A. spiniferus. In addition, E. smithi was recorded for the first time in Italy, parasitising fourth instar larvae of A. spiniferus. An assessment of the behaviour of the two parasitoids over the year suggests that their ecology may be complementarity which can promote a greater suppression of A. spiniferus populations.
Sources
Melone G, Andretta L, Pica F, Donnarumma FP, Ascolese R, Nugnes F, Laudonia S (2025) First detection of Encarsia smithi in Italy and do-occurrence with Eretmocerus iulii: a case of unintentional introductions and new associations with the invasive species Aleurocanthus spiniferus. Insects 16, 891. https://doi.org/10.3390/insects16090891