80 Environment, Vol. 20(3), October-December 2014

New record of spiraling white fly, dispersus Russell (: Aleyrodidae), on mistletoe, Dendrophthoe falcata (L.f) Ettingsh S.K. Ghirtlahre, A.K. Awasthi*, J.L.Ganguli Department of Entomology, College of Agriculture, Raipur. *Department of Entomology, TCB College of Agriculture and Research Station, Bilaspur, India Gandhi Krishi Vishwavidyalaya, Raipur-492012, Chhattisgarh, India *E- mail: [email protected]

Mistletoe, Dendrophthoe falcata (L.f) Ettingsh first appeared on sapota, Achras sapota, and then on Mangifera indica, Punica granetum, Psidium gujava in fruit orchards of T. C. B. College of Agriculture and Research Station, Sarkanda, Bilaspur, I.G.K.V. Raipur (Chhattisgarh) during January-February 2014. It is one of the hemiparasitic plants that belong to the Loranthaceae family. During survey of fruit orchards the, tiny were found attacking the inner side of the mistletoe leaves. In India, it was first recorded in 1993 at Thiruvanthpuram, Kerala on tapioca. The insect was observed on the lower surface of the leaves with the presence of waxy, white, fluffy, woolly material infesting D. falcata. The attacked leaves show discolouration which resulted in drooping and dropping of younger leaves. Damage is mainly caused by the sap-sucking immature and adult stages of whitefly that feed on the underside of the leaves. Heavily infested plants soon develop a black sooty appearance from mould growing on the sugary secretions that the insect excretes. This in combination with leaf damage reduces the plant's ability to photosynthesis and results in loss of plant vigour since it was new pest, the whitefly were collected and sent for identification at National Bureau of Agriculturally Important , Bangalore, Karnataka. It was identified as spiraling whitefly, Aleurodicus dispersus Russell (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae).

Aleurodicus dispersus on leaves of Mistletoe