Weeds and cultivated hosts of the silverleaf whitefly Bemisia argentifolii Bellows and Perring in Baja California Sur, Mexico

摘要

The silverleaf whitefly, Bemisia argentifolii, was found on 73% of cultivated plants and 66% of weed hosts from collections made during 1993-95 in Baja California Sur, Mexico. The most important cultivated hosts were Brassica spp., Cucurbita spp. and Solanum melongena [aubergines]. Among the weed hosts, the most preferred were Flaveria trinervia, Malva parviflora and Sphaeralcea emoryi. Families of plants in descending order of preference were Compositae [Asteraceae], Solanaceae, Leguminosae [Fabaceae], Cucurbitaceae, and Brassicaceae. The families Amaryllidaceae, Poaceae, and Aizoaceae did not host this insect pest. There was a significant preference of the silverleaf whitefly for foliar weeds and cultivated plants.