Defoliators of palms.

Abstract

This chapter describes the major orders of chewing insects that are of primary significance as plant defoliators, i.e. the exopterygote orders Orthoptera and Phasmida and the endopterygote orders Lepidoptera, Coleoptera, Diptera and Hymenoptera. All but the last two orders are significant on palms (Palmae or Arecaceae). The order Lepidoptera is the most widely represented on palms in different regions and contains the larger number of pestiferous species. Second in importance is Coleoptera. Several species of Orthoptera and Phasmida are defoliators on palms in Oceania, and species of Orthoptera are occasionally pests of palms elsewhere. Sawflies (Hymenoptera: Symphyta) are the main group of Hymenoptera that feed on plants. They are unknown on palms. In the American tropics, leaf-cutter ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) are sometimes defoliators of palms and many dicotyledonous trees.

Bio-ecology of Poekilloptera phalaenoides (Hemiptera: Flatidae) Under the Influence of Climatic Factors in the Brazilian Cerrado

“…These colors are partially masked by a flocculent wax coating that they secrete. There are no other species of similar appearance known to occur on palms in Florida, and very few species of Flatidae occur on palms anywhere in the world (Howard et al 2001). …”

“…The fact that the older fronds of palms are more or less horizontal and thus offer protection from sun and wind may be a factor in their being preferred by many kinds of insects (Howard et al 2001). …”

“…The most obvious characteristic common to all is the palmate, rather than pinnate, form of the fronds. Many kinds of insects that occur on palms appear to prefer palms of one or the other of these forms of fronds (Howard et al 2001). …”

Exotic insect pests: The impact of the Red Palm Weevil on natural and cultural heritage in Palermo (Italy)

“…A variety of insects are attracted to the nectar, including ants, beetles and many other insects that probably should not be considered pollinators, but rather unspecialized parasites of flowers and fruits [18,19]. Thus C. humilis also has an important role in insect communities [20] and in supporting not only botanical but also animal biodiversity, preserving several endemic species suck as the palm-feeding planthopper Ommatissus binatus [20].…”

Temperature-dependent development of dubas bug, Ommatissus lybicus (Hemiptera: Tropiduchidae), an endemic pest of date palm, Phoenix dactylifera

“…This sap sucking species is restricted to date palm Phoenix dactylifera L., on which it completes two generations per annum (autumn and spring generations) feeding on the leaves (Hussain, 1985;Howard et al, 2001). Abd-Allah et al (1998) report that the total nymphal development of the spring generation lasts from 45 to 52 days with an average of 48.4 days.…”