Bactericera

Puton, 1876

psyllid bugs, jumping plant lice

Species Guides

12

Bactericera is a of ( Triozidae) established by Auguste Puton in 1876. The genus is predominantly distributed in the Palaearctic and Nearctic regions, with 24 recognized in North America north of Mexico. Members are small phloem-feeding insects commonly known as "jumping plant lice." The genus includes economically significant agricultural pests, most notably Bactericera cockerelli (potato/tomato psyllid), which transmits the bacterial 'Candidatus Liberibacter solanacearum' causing zebra chip in potatoes.

Bactericera antennata by (c) Even Dankowicz, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Even Dankowicz. Used under a CC-BY license.Bactericera antennata by (c) Even Dankowicz, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Even Dankowicz. Used under a CC-BY license.Bactericera antennata by (c) Randy A Nonenmacher, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Randy A Nonenmacher. Used under a CC-BY license.

Pronunciation

How to pronounce Bactericera: /bækˈtɛrɪˌsɛrə/

These audio files are automatically generated. While they are not always 100% accurate, they are a good starting point.

Images

Distribution

Primarily Palaearctic and Nearctic regions. In North America, 24 are recorded north of Mexico, with documented occurrences in Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, and other western states. The has been introduced to New Zealand.

Human Relevance

The contains significant agricultural pests. Bactericera cockerelli causes major economic damage to potato, tomato, pepper, eggplant, and tobacco crops through feeding damage and transmission of 'Candidatus Liberibacter solanacearum', which causes zebra chip in potatoes. This disease can result in complete crop loss in affected fields and has caused $22.5 million in losses in New Zealand. B. cockerelli is listed as a pest in the EPPO region and has been detected in southern California, where it now occurs annually and has become a chronic problem.

Similar Taxa

  • CacopsyllaBoth are in the superfamily Psylloidea, but Cacopsylla belongs to Psyllidae rather than Triozidae. Cacopsylla such as C. pyricola (pear psylla) are also significant agricultural pests that transmit plant , making them ecologically similar to Bactericera cockerelli.
  • DiaphorinaDiaphorina citri (Asian citrus psyllid) shares similar pest status and -vectoring with B. cockerelli, but belongs to Liviidae. Both are agricultural pests monitored using similar techniques including gut content analysis to track landscape movements.

Tags

Sources and further reading