Species:Rastrococcus invadens (Green) - Catalog

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Common name: Mango mealybug

Field Characters: Body oval; slightly rounded in lateral view; body light yellow to pale green; mealy wax thin, allowing body color to show through, without a medial longitudinal crest; with triangular-shaped bare area on medial area of body, widest portion of bare area on prothorax or head, narrowest on abdomen; ovisac absent; with 17 pairs of unusually long lateral wax filaments, anterior 2 pairs (head) nearly as long as body, next 6 pairs (thoracic) all about same length 1/2 to 1 time width of body, next 9 pairs (abdominal) becoming progressively longer posteriorly, anterior-most pair about equal to greatest width of body, posterior pair nearly 4 times length of body. Occurring on foliage of host. Ovoviviparous, first instars light yellow. Surface of lateral filaments smooth.

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Validation characters: Anterior ostioles absent; cerarii with more than 5 truncate setae; cerarii on anterior thorax and head separate; without long dorsal setae adjacent to anal ring; quinquelocular pores present on venter; large-sized quinqueloculars present n marginal band on venter, about 1 pore wide; multilocular pores restricted to abdomen, absent from lateral areas; antennae 9-segmented; denticle on claw.

Comparison: Rastrococcus invadens is similar to R. spinosus by having the ventral multilocular pores confined to the abdomen, having ventral multilocular pores absent from lateral areas of abdomen, and by having a band of large-sized quinquelocular pores along body margin. Rastrococcus invadens differs by having the large-sized quinquelocular band along the body margin about 1 pore wide and by lacking extra truncate setae between the cerarii on the thorax. Rastrococcus spinosus has the large-sized quinquelocular band along the body margin 2 or 3 pores wide and has many extra truncate setae between the cerarii on the thorax.

U.S. quarantine notes: This species has been reported on more than 25 host families. It has been intercepted at US ports-of-entry from Nigeria, Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam on Caladium, Cola, Mangifera, Psidium, and Strongylodon. Three other species of Rastrococcus other than R. iceryoides and R. invadens have been taken at US ports-of-entry including: R. jabadiu Williams (Indonesia, Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand on Ficus, Nephelium, Stephanotis, and Stropanthus); R. spinosus (Robinson) (Philippines and Singapore on Lansium and Tabernaemontana); and R. tropicasiatics Williams (Philippines and Vietnam on Mangifera and Nephelium).

References: Narasi1990, Willia1986b, Willia1989, Willia2004.

All references mentioning: Rastrococcus invadens


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