Page 18 - AG 7-2011 Revised 2016
P. 18
Photo Courtesy of UNIVAR
Longtailed Mealybug
Photo Courtesy of UNIVAR
1.Antenna- small underneath the prosoma 6.Thorax- coated with wax Mealybug 6
2.Eyes- underneath the prosoma 7.Petiole- none
3.Head- attached to thorax w/stylet 8.Abdomen-attached to thorax
4.Legs- 6 9.Color-white
5.Wings- none 10.Other-some have long
filamentus tails
Life Cycle 10
Some Mealy bugs lay eggs within an egg sac, while some varieties give birth to live
crawlers. There can be two generations each year and they may overwinter. In spring Drawing by Andrew Schaible
most mealybug crawlers move onto expanding green shoots, reaching maturity in mid-
May to early June. The new females lay eggs that hatch from mid-June to July. The next
generation crawlers then move out to the green portions to feed on foliage in late June
or early July; mostly immature Mealy bugs are seen through July. Adult females will
again appear in late summer and early fall.
Mealy bugs are about 1/8 to ΒΌ inch long, and leave a white, powdery wax. They secrete a honeydew
that ants crave, and attack landscape plants and trees. Mealy bugs will actually form colonies on the
plants they are attacking. Aphids, mealy bugs, scale insects, and white flies are all soft-bodied insects.
They are closely associated with ants, because the ants protect them against their natural enemies by
actually fighting off their predators.
Mealy Bugs typically infest citrus, but will also go after dracaena palm and greenhouse plants. Care
must be taken not to kill off Mealy Bug Destroyers, whose larvae look remarkably similar to the Mealy
bugs themselves.
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