Papers are presented focusing on biological control agents and how they are regulated across the EPPO region, how their use can be facilitated and how they may contribute to slowing the spread of invasive pests and mitigating the damage they cause. Three papers deal with Dryocosmus kuriphilus, a...

Pitch canker, caused by the pathogen Fusarium circinatum, is a serious disease of pines, Pinus species. It is a threat to natural and planted pine forests, and to date it has invaded countries across five continents. Pine-feeding insects can play a key role in the epidemiology of the disease, as...

We present records for six new stink bug species reported for Puerto Rico. These include two predatory species: Apateticus lineolatus (Herrich Schäffer) and Tylospilus acutissimus (Stal) (Asopinae); and four phytophagous species: Berecynthus hastator (F.), Chlorocoris tau Spinola, and Acrosternum (...

Scaphoideus titanus Ball, the main vector of Flavescence dorée phytoplasma, was monitored in Slovakia during 2013 and 2014. The species was present in the vineyards of eastern Slovakia but it was rarely found in the south of central part of the country. It was also found at many locations of...

The western flower thrips (Frankliniella occidentalis) is an invasive thrips pest of tomatoes in the southeastern United States. This species causes crop loss to farmers by injuring fruits and vectoring Tomato spotted wilt virus. Previous attempts to control this species using calendar applications ...

A pest survey and subsequent identification confirmed the presence of the spiraling whitefly, Aleurodicus dispersus Russell (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae), in Pinrang District, South Sulawesi Province of Indonesia. This is the first report of the insect in the province and population outbreaks resulting...

The five-spined bark beetle, Ips grandicollis, is an exotic pest in Australia that preferentially attacks stressed pine trees, including Pinus radiata D. Don, but it can also attack healthy trees. The beetle has been present in Australia for 70 years, feeding principally on logging debris, with...

Huanglongbing (HLB) is an unculturable vascular citrus pathogen transmitted from infected to healthy plants through grafting or by citrus psyllids, Diaphorina citri mainly in Asia and America and Trioza erytreae in Africa. Following the outbreak in the United States and the Caribbean, and also...

A new species of Callimomoides Girault 1926 (Hymenoptera: Pteromalidae), Callimomoides monochaphagae Yang, sp. n., is described from China. It is a solitary endoparasitoid of eggs of the pine sawyer, Monochamus alternatus Hope (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae), a serious pest that causes damage to pine...

Owing to complex direct and indirect effects, impacts of higher trophic levels on plants is poorly understood. In tropical agroecosystems, ants interact with crop mutualists and antagonists, but little is known about how this integrates into the final ecosystem service, crop yield. We combined ant...