Prevalent Transmission of 'Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus' over 'Ca. Liberibacter americanus' in a Long-Term Controlled Environment.

In Brazil, citrus huanglongbing (HLB) is associated with 'Candidatus Liberibacter americanus' (CLam) and 'Ca. Liberibacter asiaticus' (CLas). However, there are few studies about HLB epidemiology when both Liberibacter spp. and its insect vector, the Asian citrus psyllid (ACP, Diaphorina citri), are present. The objective of this work was to compare the transmission of HLB by ACP when both CLam and CLas are present as primary inoculum. Two experiments were performed under screenhouse conditions from April 2008 to January 2012 (experiment 1) and from February 2011 to December 2015 (experiment 2). The experiments were carried out with sweet orange plants infected with CLam or CLas as inoculum source surrounded by sweet orange healthy plants. One hundred Liberibacter-free adult psyllids were monthly confined to the source of inoculum plants for 7 days with subsequent free movement inside the screenhouse. Fortnightly, nymphs and adults of psyllids were monitored. Psyllid and leaf samples were collected periodically for Liberibacter detection by PCR or quantitative PCR. CLas was detected more frequently than CLam in both psyllid and leaf samples. No mixed infections were detected in the psyllids. A clear prevalence of CLas over CLam was observed in both experiments. The final HLB incidences were 16.7 and 14.5% of Liberibacter-positive test plants, and CLas was detected in 92.3 and 93.1% of these infected plants. Mixed infection was observed only in 3.8% of infected test plants in experiment 1. These results endorse the shift in the prevalence of CLam to CLas observed in citrus orchards of São Paulo, Brazil.

Efficacy of Area-Wide Inoculum Reduction and Vector Control on Temporal Progress of Huanglongbing in Young Sweet Orange Plantings.

Huanglongbing (HLB), caused by 'Candidatus Liberibacter' spp. and transmitted by the Asian citrus psyllid Diaphorina citri (ACP), is an important threat to citrus industries worldwide, causing significant yield loss. The current recommended strategies to manage HLB are to eliminate HLB-symptomatic trees to reduce sources of bacterial inoculum and to apply insecticides to reduce psyllid vector populations. The objective of this study was to assess the effectiveness and the importance of both strategies applied within young citrus plots (local management), in different frequencies and combinations, on HLB temporal progress. Two factorial field experiments, E1 and E2, were initiated in a new plantation of sweet orange in an HLB epidemic region of Sao Paulo, Brazil, in October 2005 and May 2006, respectively. Local inoculum reduction (tree removal) intervals for E1 were every 4, 8, and 16 weeks and, for E2, every 2, 4, 12, and 26 weeks. Local vector control strategies for E1 were no control, program A (PA), and program B (PB); and, for E2, no control and program C (PC), as follows. Psyllids were controlled with two 56-day-interval soil or drench applications of systemic insecticides concurrently with the rainy season each year and, during the rest of the year, with insecticide sprays every 28 days for PA and every 14 days for PB and PC. Regional HLB management was present for E1 and absent for E2. The beginning of the HLB epidemic was delayed for 10 months in E1 compared with appearance of the first diseased tree in E2 but wasn't affected by different local strategies in either experiment. After 60 (E1) and 53 (E2) months, the HLB incidence and progress rates were not affected by different frequencies of local inoculum reduction in either experiment, and were different only in plots with and without local vector control in E2. In E1, the disease incidence was reduced by 90% and the disease progress rate by 50% in plots both with and without vector control. These reductions were explained by smaller psyllid populations and lower frequency of bacterialiferous psyllids in E1 compared with E2. Annual productivity increased over time in E1, as expected for young plantings, but remained stable or decreased in E2. These results confirm that immigration of bacterialiferous ACP vectors plays a critical role in HLB epidemics and suggest that area-wide inoculum reduction and ACP management strongly affect HLB control.

Faunistic analysis of sharpshooters (Hemiptera: Auchenorrhyncha, Cicadellidae) in a 'Westin' sweet orange orchard.

The purpose of this study was to analyze sharpshooter fauna in a five-year-old 'Westin' sweet orange orchard. Yellow sticky traps were placed on the edge of a forest, and on the periphery and inside the citrus stand. The traps were evaluated fortnightly, for three years. The most frequent species were Acrogonia citrina Marucci & Cavichioli, Bucephalogonia xanthophis (Berg), and Oncometopia facialis (Signoret). B. xanthophis occurred more in the forest edge, especially on spring and winter. A. citrina occurred most frequently in the forest edge, especially on spring. The highest incidence of O. facialis was inside the citrus stand, on spring and summer. Other cicadellids occurred more often in the forest edge, especially on summer. A. citrina, B. xanthophis, Dilobopterus costalimai Young, and O. facialis were predominant in all places studied. A. citrina, B. xanthophis and O. facialis were super dominant, super abundant, super frequent, and constant, except inside the stand, where B. xanthophis was dominant, very abundant, very frequent, and constant. D. costalimai and Homalodisca ignorata Melichar were dominant, very abundant, and very frequent in the forest edge and in the periphery of the stand, and D. costalimai was also predominant inside the stand. Scopogonalia subolivacea (Stål) was predominant in the forest edge and inside the stand, while Plesiommata corniculata Young was predominant in the periphery (both were dominant, very abundant, very frequent, and accessory).

Faunistic analysis of sharpshooters (Hemiptera: Auchenorrhyncha, Cicadellidae) in a 'Westin' sweet orange orchard / Análise faunística de cicadelíneos (Hemiptera: Auchenorrhyncha, Cicadellidae) em pomar de laranjeira 'Westin'

The purpose of this study was to analyze sharpshooter fauna in a five-year-old 'Westin' sweet orange orchard. Yellow sticky traps were placed on the edge of a forest, and on the periphery and inside the citrus stand. The traps were evaluated fortnightly, for three years. The most frequent species were Acrogonia citrina Marucci & Cavichioli, Bucephalogonia xanthophis (Berg), and Oncometopia facialis (Signoret). B. xanthophis occurred more in the forest edge, especially on spring and winter. A. citrina occurred most frequently in the forest edge, especially on spring. The highest incidence of O. facialis was inside the citrus stand, on spring and summer. Other cicadellids occurred more often in the forest edge, especially on summer. A. citrina, B. xanthophis, Dilobopterus costalimai Young, and O. facialis were predominant in all places studied. A. citrina, B. xanthophis and O. facialis were super dominant, super abundant, super frequent, and constant, except inside the stand, where B. xanthophis was dominant, very abundant, very frequent, and constant. D. costalimai and Homalodisca ignorata Melichar were dominant, very abundant, and very frequent in the forest edge and in the periphery of the stand, and D. costalimai was also predominant inside the stand. Scopogonalia subolivacea (Stål) was predominant in the forest edge and inside the stand, while Plesiommata corniculata Young was predominant in the periphery (both were dominant, very abundant, very frequent, and accessory).

O objetivo deste trabalho foi analisar a fauna de cigarrinhas em pomar de laranjeira 'Westin' enxertada sobre limoeiro 'Cravo', em plantas com cinco anos de idade. Foram instaladas armadilhas adesivas amarelas na borda da mata, na periferia do talhão e no interior do talhão, sendo avaliadas quinzenalmente, por três anos. As cigarrinhas que ocorreram com maior freqüência foram Acrogonia citrina Marucci & Cavichioli, Bucephalogonia xanthophis (Berg) e Oncometopia facialis (Signoret). B. xanthophis ocorreu mais na borda da mata, principalmente na primavera e inverno. A. citrina ocorreu mais na borda da mata, principalmente na primavera. A a maior incidência de O. facialis foi no interior do talhão, e maior na primavera e verão. A ocorrência de outros cicadelíneos foi maior na borda da mata, principalmente no verão. Segundo a análise faunística, A. citrina, B. xanthophis, Dilobopterus costalimai Young e O. facialis foram predominantes em todos os locais estudados; A. citrina, B. xanthophis e O. facialis foram super dominantes, super abundantes, super freqüentes e constantes, exceto no interior do talhão, onde B. xanthophis foi dominante, muito abundante, muito freqüente e constante. D. costalimai e Homalodisca ignorata Melichar foram dominantes, muito abundantes e muito freqüentes na borda da mata e periferia do talhão, sendo que D. costalimai também foi predominante no interior do talhão. Scopogonalia subolivacea (Stål) foi predominante na borda da mata e interior do talhão e Plesiommata corniculata Young, na periferia do talhão (ambas foram dominantes, muito abundantes, muito freqüentes e acessórias).