Horticulture/Bemesia argentifolii

The silverleaf whitefly (Bemisia argentifolii, formerly referred to as sweetpotato whitefly-strain B Bemisia tabaci) is one of several whiteflies that are currently important agricultural pests. The silverleaf whitefly was first found in poinsettia crops in Florida in the mid-1980's. It was found to have moved on to tomatoes and other fruit and vegetable crops less than a year later. Within five years, the silverleaf whitefly had caused over $100 million in damage to the Texas and California agriculture industries.

Description
The adult silverleaf whitefly is about 1 millimeter in length and pale yellow in color.

Symptoms and Signs
In addition to inflicting typical whitefly-type damage on plants, this species can transmit plant viruses such as geminiviruses. The broad mite (Polyphagotarsonemus latus) also uses the whitefly as a dispersal mechanism by clinging to the legs of the fly and dropping off at another plant.

Host plants

 * ../Abelmoschus/ (Okra)
 * ../Acacia/
 * ../Amaranthus/
 * ../Arachis/ (Peanut)
 * ../Arum/
 * ../Aster/
 * ../Asystasia/
 * ../Begonia/
 * ../Brassica/
 * ../Callistemon/ (Bottle Brush)
 * ../Canna/
 * ../Capsicum/
 * ../Carica/ (Papaya)
 * ../Centaurea/ (Bachelor’s Buttons)
 * ../Chenopodium/
 * ../Citrullus/
 * ../Coccinia/ (Scarlet Gourds)
 * ../Coleus/
 * ../Colocasia/ (Taro)
 * ../Convolvulus/
 * ../Cucumis/
 * ../Cucurbita/
 * ../Dahlia/
 * ../Dendranthema/
 * ../Euphorbia/
 * ../Ficus/
 * ../Gerbera/
 * ../Glycine/ (Soybean)
 * ../Fuchsia/
 * ../Gossypium/
 * ../Hibiscus/
 * ../Hydrangea/
 * ../Impatiens/
 * ../Ipomoea/
 * ../Iris/
 * ../Lactuca/ (Lettuce)
 * ../Lagerstroemia/ (Crepe Myrtle)
 * ../Lantana/
 * ../Lycopersicon/
 * ../Malva/
 * ../Mandevilla/
 * ../Medicago/
 * ../Persea/ (Avocado)
 * ../Petunia/
 * ../Phaseolus/
 * ../Physalis/ (Ground Cherry)
 * ../Plumeria/
 * ../Primula/
 * ../Rosa/
 * ../Solanum/
 * ../Verbena/
 * ../Viola/

Control
This particular pest has been shown to be a good candidate for biological pest control, as it has several natural enemies, including parasitic wasps such as Encarsia and Eretmocerus.