Crops Affected: Citrus

States Affected: CA, FL, TX

Life Cycle: Nymphs are called "crawlers" and are active but flightless, moving around to find a suitable site to live as an adult. The adult scale will stay in one place its entire life, hidden under a protective waxy cover. Once they die, the scale will remain in place, making monitoring of current populations difficult. Males also live under a waxy scale, but will emerge at the end of their life as a "flyer" to mate. There are typically four male flights per year. This species is present in all stages year round.

Damage: Nymphs and adults are sap suckers. They will attach all aerial parts of the citrus, including twigs, leaves, branches and fruit. They can cause leaf yellowing, leaf drop, twig dieback, and damaged fruit. In several infestations, the afflicted trees may die.

Season to Trap: Year round

How To Use: Hang trap with lure inside at shoulder height near at risk or affected crops. Replace lures every 30 days through the season, and replace traps when 70% saturated. Adult males are attracted to the pheromones in the lure and the color of the traps in this kit. Once they land on the sticky trap, they become ensnared, never to mate or lay eggs again.

Additional IPM Solutions: Avoid practices that destroy or disrupt native beneficial insects. In particular, avoid using horticultural oil or other pesticides unless necessary, and time sprays to least disrupt beneficial life cycles. Prevent crawlers from spreading to new trees by sanitizing tools and equipment, and by removing infested fruit and branches from the field.