Ecology and management of the crapemyrtle aphid (Hemiptera: Aphididae) on crapemyrtle (Myrtales: Lythraceae) in the southern United States

Caleb J. Wilson, Matthew A. Bertone

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Crapemyrtle aphid [Sarucallis kahawaluokalani (Kirkaldy 1907)] (CMA) is an introduced pest of crapemyrtle (Lagerstroemia spp. L.), which is among the most common ornamental tree genera in the southern United States. Native to Southeast Asia, CMA has become established on 5 other continents. CMAs produce honeydew as they feed which supports sooty mold growth and can result in leaf defoliation on infested trees. CMAs tend to be most abundant in crapemyrtles planted in locations with extensive surrounding impervious surface cover. A large community of generalist natural enemies are found in close association with CMA, which suggests that CMAs may help conserve natural enemy communities in urban areas. Due to the long-lasting blooms produced by crapemyrtle, and the attractiveness of these blooms to pollinators, insecticides should be used as a last resort to manage CMA infestations. While CMA is considered a specialist pest of crapemyrtle, it has been recorded on 3 species outside of the genus Lagerstroemia.The wide distribution of CMA, closely overlapping that of crapemyrtle, suggests that CMA can likely be found wherever crapemyrtles are commonly planted.

Original languageEnglish
Article numberpmae003
JournalJournal of Integrated Pest Management
Volume15
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - 2024

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America.

Funding

We thank Steve Frank (North Carolina State University), Michael Just (US Army ERDC CERL), and 3 anonymous reviewers for providing feedback on earlier versions of this manuscript. We thank James Baker (North Carolina State University) for providing the photograph used in Fig. 2. This publication was supported by start-up funds provided to C.J.W. by the Department of Entomology, University of Kentucky. This publication was supported by start-up funds provided to C.J.W. by the Department of Entomology, University of Kentucky.

FundersFunder number
James Baker
University of Kentucky
University of North Carolina and North Carolina State University
Department of Entomology, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Michigan State University

    Keywords

    • crapemyrtle
    • crapemyrtle aphid
    • natural enemy
    • urban tree

    ASJC Scopus subject areas

    • Agronomy and Crop Science
    • Plant Science
    • Insect Science
    • Management, Monitoring, Policy and Law

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