Review ENTOMOLOGY J.C. Franco et al. (2004) Phytoparasitica 32(5):507-522 Management Strategies of Mealybug Pests of Citrus in Mediterranean Countries Jos´ e Carlos Franco, 1 Pompeo Suma, 2 Elsa Borges da Silva, 1 Daniel Blumberg 3 and Zvi Mendel 3,* Six mealybug species have been reported as citrus pests in the Mediterranean Basin: the citrus mealybug Planococcus citri (Risso), the citriculus mealybug Pseudococcus cryptus Hempel, the longtailed mealybug Pseudococcus longispinus (Targioni-Tozzetti), the cit- rophilus mealybug Pseudococcus calceolariae (Maskell), the obscure mealybug Pseudococ- cus viburni (Signoret) and the spherical mealybug Nipaecoccus viridis (Newstead). Some of these species, e.g. N. viridis, have recently been introduced into the region and are still spreading. Mealybugs are usually occasional or minor pests of citrus, but some species can reach key pest status. Mealybug management strategies in citrus have been based mostly on classical biological control and, to a lesser extent, on augmentative releases. However, chemical control is widely used, mainly because of the poor adaptation of the principal natural enemies to the climatic conditions of the Mediterranean. The application of pheromones is still restricted to monitoring the citrus mealybug, whose sex pheromone is commercially available. Mass trapping and mating disruption should be considered for possible use in IPM programs as an alternative method to supplementary chemical treatments. Enhancement of biological control through management of ant populations is another promising tactic for control of mealybugs. Strategies for managing mealybug pests of citrus, and possible levels of integration of different tactics according to the pest status, are discussed. KEY WORDS: Mealybugs; Pseudococcidae; IPM; biological control; Mediterranean region. INTRODUCTION Some mealybugs (Hemiptera: Coccoidea: Pseudococcidae) are very polyphagous, while others are restricted to one species or genus of host plants. Like most of the insect pests of citrus in the Mediterranean region, mealybugs comprise species of foreign origin that have become serious pests of citrus varieties which themselves had been introduced into the region. Mealybugs are generally sessile insects in the nymphal and adult female stages. In some species, females are legless, or have reduced legs. Mealybug nymphs and adult females are oval or circular, soft, usually with distinct segmentation and covered with a mealy or cottony wax secretion. Similar to other scale insects, the adult females are wingless. The taxonomic identification of mealybug species is based almost exclusively on the morphological characteristics of the adult female (100). Mealybug species that cause economic damage in fruit orchards are generally more common in the subtropical Received Nov. 24, 2003; accepted July 1, 2004; http://www.phytoparasitica.org posting Oct. 3, 2004. 1 Dpto. de Protecc ¸˜ ao das Plantas e de Fitoecologia, Instituto Superior de Agronomia, 1349-017 Lisboa, Portugal. 2 Dipto. di Scienze e Tecnologie Fitosanitarie, sez. Entomologia Agraria, 95123 Catania, Italy. 3 Dept. of Entomology, ARO, The Volcani Center, Bet Dagan, 50250, Israel. *Corresponding author [e-mail: zmendel@volcani.agri.gov.il]. Phytoparasitica 32:5, 2004 507