First reports of Dactylopius opuntiae in Algeria, Libya and Syria
Dactylopius opuntiae (Hemiptera: Dactylopiidae) feeds on Opuntia species. In the EPPO region, this scale species is causing severe damage to cultivated and wild Opuntia species, such as Opuntia ficus-indica. D. opuntiae was first recorded in the EPPO region in Spain in 2009 (EPPO RS 2014/100), in Lebanon in 2012 (RS 2017/189), in Israel in 2013, in Morocco in 2014 (RS 2016/152), in Cyprus in 2016 (RS 2017/082) and in Jordan in 2019 (RS 2019/154), and in Tunisia in 2024 (RS 2024/103).
D. opuntiae was recently recorded in the following countries in the Mediterranean Basin:
- Syria: first detected in 2020.
- Algeria: first detected in 2021 in the region of Tlemcen, and in 2024 in the region of Oran. The pest is considered widespread and damaging in the north-west of Algeria.
- Libya: first detected in May 2024 in the western coastal areas and then in other regions.
Sources
Abusharya MA, Ashokri HA (2025) Opuntia cochineal scale pest, Dactylopius opuntiae: current situation, description, importance, and control methods in countries of the Mediterranean Basin and North Africa. Acta Biology Forum 4(2), 15-18. https://doi.org/10.51470/ABF.2025.4.2.15
El Bouhissi M, Ghefar M, Sadine SE, Gachi M (2022) Note sur la présence de Dactylopius opuntiae (Cockerell, 1896) sur le figuier de Barbarie en Algérie (Hemiptera: Dactylopiidae). Annales de la Recherche Forestière en Algérie 12(1), 1-6.
Leblalta A, Meradsi F, Katbeh Bader A, Kenou GB, Warot S, Ris N (2025) First detection of the opuntia cochineal scale Dactylopius opuntiae (Cockerell, 1896)(Hemiptera: Dactylopiidae), in Misserghin (Oran), the North-West of Algeria. Acta Phytopathologica et Entomologica Hungarica 60(1), 50-58 (abst.)