Data on biology and ecology of Pseudaulacaspis pentagona (Targioni Tozzetti) (Hemiptera: Diaspididae) on fruit trees in the Peloponnese

Abstract

The study was conducted In Kalamata, Messinia, province of the Peloponnese, where infestations of Pseudauacaspis pentagona (Targioni Tozzetti) (Hemiptera: Diaspididae) were found on kiwi trees Actinidia deliciosa (Actinidiaceae), peach trees Prunus persica (Rosaceae) and mulberry trees Morus alba (Moraceae). Data on biology and ecology of the scale were recorded by samplings of infested branches of mulberry trees and by examining them in the laboratory, during the years 2016-2018. Pseudaulacaspis pentagona is an oviparous and amphigonic species. The fecundity of the scale fluctuated between 97 and 133 eggs per female. In the area of Kalamata it completed 3 generations per year and overwintered as mated pre-ovipositing female. The main natural enemies of P. pentagona recorded in the area of Kalamata are the coccinellid predators: Chilocorus bipustulatus (L.) and Rhyzobius lophanthae Blaisdell.

Keywords

• fecundity
• natural enemies
• predators
• pseudaulacaspis pentagona
• pseudaulacaspis pentagona