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Capulinia linarosae Kondo and Gullan, 2016: History y current situation as guava pest, Psidium guajava L. in Venezuela

Abstract:

From 1993 guava cottony scale Capulinia sp. (Hemiptera:Eriococcidae) became a pest on guava, Psidium guajava L. (Myrtaceae), in Venezuela. Since then, guava cottony scale has devastated more than 600 ha of guava fields in Maracaibo’s heigth plain, Zulia state. The first outbreaks of this insect were thought to be associated with unbalanced relationships between natural enemies and one of the many scales previously reported on guava. However, further studies showed that this insect was actually new species and more recently described as Capulinia linarosae Kondo and Gullan. In 1996, the parasitoid wasp, Metaphycus sp. (Hymenoptera:Encyrtidae) was found attacking C. linarosae, lowering the damage of this insect in guava fields. Altogether, this review aims to analyze the evolution of C. linarosae as one of the mayor constraints for guava production in Venezuela.