# Whiteflies

Whiteflies are Hemipteran insects that typically are tiny, white, and suck phloem sap from the undersides of plant leaves. The adult forms have four white wings. More than 1550 whitefly species have been scientifically described. The species comprise the family Aleyrodidae. The adult forms of most species have a wingspan of less than 3 mm and a body length of 1 mm to 2 mm.

## Quotes

* Whitefly-borne diseases of plants cause great concern in many tropical areas ... The fact that beans, soybeans, pigeon peas, and other edible legumes, which are primary sources of protein for the diet of many people in the Tropics, fall prey to some of theses agents have prompted local governments and international agencies to institute programs for their study and control ...
** Julio Bird and Karl Maramorosch, "Chapter. Viruses and Virus Diseases Associated with Whiteflies". Advances in Virus Research, Volume 22. Academic Press. 27 April 1978. pp. 55–111. ISBN 978-0-08-058312-9. (quote from p. 55)
* Virus diseases that have emerged in the past two decades limit the production of important vegetable crops in tropical, subtropical, and temperate regions worldwide, and many of the causal viruses are transmitted by whiteflies (order Hemiptera, family Aleyrodidae). Most of these whitefly-transmitted viruses are begomoviruses (family Geminiviridae), although whiteflies are also vectors of criniviruses, ipomoviruses, torradoviruses, and some carlaviruses. Factors driving the emergence and establishment of whitefly-transmitted diseases include genetic changes in the virus through mutation and recombination, changes in the vector populations coupled with polyphagy of the main vector, Bemisia tabaci, and long distance traffic of plant material or vector insects due to trade of vegetables and ornamental plants. The role of humans in increasing the emergence of virus diseases is obvious, and the effect that climate change may have in the future is unclear.
** Jesús Navas-Castillo1, Elvira Fiallo-Olivé, and Sonia Sánchez-Campos, (2011)"Emerging Virus Diseases Transmitted by Whiteflies". Annual Review of Phytopathology 49: 219–248. DOI:10.1146/annurev-phyto-072910-095235.
* In tomato production, both open field and greenhouse, management of whiteflies and the viruses they transmit ranks among the highest priorities of growers. Largely driven by the damage of two species, Bemisia tabaci (Gennadius) and Trialeurodes vaporariorum Westwood, a wealth of information has been developed over the last 150 years that informs current whitefly management programs and provides the foundation for such programs in the future. The literature on whiteflies is vast ...
** Thomas M. Perring, Philip A. Stansly, T.X. Liu, Hugh A. Smith, and Sharon A. Andreason,"Chapter 4. Whiteflies: Biology, Ecology, and Management". Sustainable Management of Arthropod Pests of Tomato. 2018. pp. 73–110. doi:10.1016/B978-0-12-802441-6.00004-8. ISBN 978-0-12-802441-6. (edited by Waqas Wakil, Gerald E. Brust, and Thomas Perring)
* Whiteflies, Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae, Bemisia tabaci, a complex of morphologically indistinguishable species ... , are vectors of many plant viruses. Several genera of these whitefly-transmitted plant viruses (Begomovirus, Carlavirus, Crinivirus, Ipomovirus, Torradovirus) include several hundred species of emerging and economically significant pathogens of important food and fiber crops ... These viruses do not replicate in their vector but nevertheless are moved readily from plant to plant by the adult whitefly by various means ... For most of these viruses whitefly feeding is required for acquisition and inoculation, while for others only probing is required. Many of these viruses ... cannot be easily transmitted by other means.
** Jane E. Polston and H. Capobianco, (2013)"Transmitting Plant Viruses Using Whiteflies". Journal of Visualized Experiments (81). DOI:10.3791/4332.
* Exotic invasive whiteflies (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) in India cause direct and indirect yield losses in agriculture, horticulture and forestry crop plants. Around 25 years ago, the spiralling whitefly, Aleurodicus disperses Russell invaded and established on many host plants including economically important crops in India. Recently, within a span of five years, seven whiteflies invaded India viz., solanum whitefly, Aleurothrixus trachoides (Back) reported to breed on 37 plant species; rugose spiraling whitefly (RSW), Aleurodicus rugioperculatus Martin found breeding on 40 host plants; nesting whiteflies, Paraleyrodes bondari Peracchi on 34 host plants and P. minei Ιaccarino infest about 25 host plants; legume feeding whitefly, Tetraleurodes acaciae (Quaintance) infesting 5 host plants; palm infesting whitefly, Aleurotrachelus atratus Hempel on 4 host plants and woolly whitefly, Aleurothrixus floccosus (Maskell) infesting guava. These invasive species are native to the Neotropical region, mostly from Central America and the Caribbean. Extensive spread along the coastal regions and gardens near the backwater of India is predicted owing to the favorable weather factors and availability of host plants. Species of exotic whiteflies with similar habits co-exist in more or less the same niche and have a similar pattern of growth and development. The intensity of infestation of RSW on coconut, banana and oil palm, the woolly whitefly on guava and the palm infesting whitefly and nesting whiteflies on coconut was severe. The exotic aphelinid parasitoid, Encarsia guadeloupae Viggiani (Hymenoptera: Aphelinidae), a predator Pseudomallada astur (Banks) (Neuroptera: Chrysopidae) and the entomopathogenic fungus, Isaria fumosorosea Wize (Hypocreales: Clavicipitaceae) play a major role in reducing the population of these invasives. The most insidious spread of these species in India is likely mediated by humans through the movement of infested seedlings and plant materials. Extensive surveys revealed that these species spread rapidly in the large geographical region of India mostly through transportation of infested seedlings.
** R. Sundararaj, Selvaraj Krishnan, and B. V. Sumalatha, (2021). "Invasion and expansion of exotic whiteflies (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) in India and their economic importance". Phytoparasitica 49 (5): 851-863.
* • Whiteflies are plant phloem feeders and have diverse interactions with host plants. • Plants defend against whitefly attacks by alternations of morphology and physiology. • Whitefly oral secretions, honeydew and endosymbionts regulate plant defense. • Viruses may mediate whitefly–plant interactions directly and indirectly.
** Xiao-Wei Wang, Ping Li, and Shu-Sheng Liu, (2017)"Whitefly interactions with plants". Current Opinion in Insect Science 19: 70–75. DOI:10.1016/j.cois.2017.02.001.

## External links

* Encyclopedic article on Whitefly on Wikipedia
* The dictionary definition of whitefly on Wiktionary