American serpentine leaf miner

exit hole in the leaf with its mouth parts. After roughly one hour the larva crawls out of the leaf and falls to the ground. This occurs in the early morning [...] criterion for the identification of the species. Indirect damage arises when disease causing fungi or bacteria enter the plant tissue via the feeding spots [...] feeding spots. The larvae of Liriomyza trifolii are entirely ochre-yellow. When the larva hatches from the egg, it begins to eat into the leaf at once,

Tomato leaf miner

roughly one hour the larva crawls out of the leaf and falls to the ground. This occurs in the early morning. The larva crawls into the ground to pupate [...] percentage of the larvae remain hanging on the leaf and pupate there, sometimes on the upper surface but more commonly on the underside. The late third instar [...] larvae have a yellow head. When the larva hatches from the egg, it begins to eat into the leaf at once, tunnelling down into the mesophyll tissue where damage

Broad mite

to the damage caused by viruses. The typical pattern of damage consists of malformation and distortion of the above-ground growth of the plant. The mites [...] lay their eggs mainly on the underside of the leaf or on the fruit surface. The elongated, oval eggs are firmly attached to the surface and are rather large [...] tissue, like the growing tips, young leaves and flower buds. The mechanism causing the deformation is not yet fully understood, possibly the mites, whilst

Onion thrips

prepupa, pupa, and finally the adult insect. The eggs of the onion thrips (Thrips tabaci) are laid in leaves, flower petals and in the soft parts of stalks. [...] cells of the surface tissues and sucking out their contents, causing the surrounding tissue to die. The resulting silver-grey patches on leaves and the black [...] indicate their presence in the crop. The vigour of the plant is reduced by loss of chlorophyll. When infestations become serious the leaves themselves can shrivel

Leaf miners

lost before the harvest is affected. The size of a leaf tunnel depends on the stage of development of the leaf, the species of host plant and the species of [...] belong to the order Diptera (the true flies ) and form the family Agromyzidae. This is a family of small flies whose larvae tunnel into the leaves of plants [...] parts of the world. Under natural conditions, the larvae of these species are parasitized by parasitic wasps and so cause few problems. However, the use of

Oleander aphid

rather than eggs and that the progeny are clones of the adult female. The nymphs feed in colonies on the shoots at the top of the plant. Nymphs progress through [...] region, the origin of its principal host plant, oleander. Damage symptoms The colonies of bright yellow aphids can easily be seen on the shoots of the host [...] host plants. The damage caused by the aphid colonies is mainly aesthetic due to the large amounts of sticky honeydew produced and the resulting black sooty

Tobacco aphid

on the abdomen and several transverse black bands across the body. The antennae are 0.7-1.0 times the body length, reaching to the siphunculi. The body [...] of dispersing through the crop by walking. The tobacco aphid tends to form denser colonies, closer to the top of the plant, than the peach potato aphid [...] from the plant and disturb the balance of growth hormones. As a result, the plant’s growth is retarded giving rise to deformed leaves or, if the infestation

Red palm weevil

morphology of the palms, direct or indirect destruction of the apical bud will lead to the death of the plant, which makes the red palm weevil ( Rhynchophorus [...] weevil The adults of the red palm weevil ( Rhynchophorus ferrugineus ) are typical weevils: the head extends with a long thin rostrum that holds the antennae [...] larvae migrate to the periphery of the palms to build a solid elongated cocoon made of rolled-up palm fibres. After the cocoon is formed the larva enters a

Caterpillars

belong to the Noctuidae (the noctuid or owl moths), which is the largest of all lepidopteran families. Most adults of this family are nocturnal. The caterpillars [...] pupate in the ground. Another family containing several species that damage greenhouse crops is the leafroller family, the Tortricidae. The name ‘leafroller’ [...] not able to chew and therefore graze the underside of leaves. This causes a window effect where the epidermis of the upper leaf surface remains undamaged

Two-spotted spider mite

to the host plant by feeding on plant sap. They mainly occur on the underside of leaves where they pierce the cells and suck out the contents. The empty [...] to loss of the crop. The nymphs and adults also produce webs, and plants can get completely covered with such webs in which the mites live. The webbing and [...] become yellow, and in many plants the damage can also be seen on the upper surface of leaves as small yellow dots. The destruction of cells results in reduced