Western flower thrips (WFT), Frankliniella occidentalis (Pergande) (Thysanoptera: Thripidae) is a native insect of the western part of North America that was first reported in 1895.In the 1970s and early 1980s, this species spread throughout North America (Beshear 1983). Photo: Thrips: www.gardentech.com Thrips are tiny insects that are mainly active at night. The western flower thrips, Frankliniella occidentalis (Pergande) (Thysanoptera: Thripidae), is an important invasive pest that damages a range of horticultural and agronomic crops worldwide (Reitz 2009, Mouden et al. 2005). Life stages Egg. Onion thrips and western flower thrips are found widely throughout New Zealand on a broad range of crops. TSWV has a very wide host range, and the only thrips that transmits the virus in a persistent way. Large numbers of young flush leaves were killed which negatively impacted ACP, as ACP is dependent on flush for oviposition and nymph development. Western flower thrips, the primary thrips species encountered by greenhouse producers, is extremely polyphagous, feeding on a wide-variety of horticultural crops grown in both commercial and research greenhouses. Plants were sampled primarily while in flower. The number of WFT on non-flowering plants was significantly lower than on flowering plants or single cut flowers. Hosts. Both viruses affect a wide range of plants, and often a single host plant may be infected by both viruses. The western flower thrips were originally from the western US, but began to spread in the 1960s and are now a global pest. Several species of thrips can infest greenhouse floral crops, but the most severe and common pest in recent years has been the western flower thrips (WFT), Frankliniella occidentalis. Western flower thrips also vector some potentially devastating diseases, such as Impatiens necrotic spot virus or Tomato spotted wilt virus . 117) and melon thrips (see Fact Sheet no. occidentaliswas main-tained on potted, ï¬owering plants of the susceptible chrysanthemum cultivar Sunny Cassa in a greenhouse at258 C and70% relative humidity. Western Flower Thrips. Thrips palmi was first described by H. Karny in 1925 from specimens collected in 1921 on tobacco in Sumatra. The second most abundant predators were spiders (Araneae). Introduction . Western flower thrips (WFT) Frankliniella occidentalis continues to be a serious pest of floriculture crops in New England. Volatiles collected by entrainment of a solvent extract of F. ulmaria were more attractive than was the original extract. Plant length and leaf area of non-flowering Dendranthema grandiflora Tzvelev were reduced after WFT infestation, and these two variables were correlated. Western flower thrips has a host range of hundreds of plant species, including many major commercial floriculture crops. The western flower thrips [Frankliniella occidentalis (Pergande)] is an invasive pest insect in agriculture. We confirmed whether α-ionone is effective for the combination of Arabidopsis and western flower thrips by releasing adult female thrips onto the leaf surface of wild-type (Col-0) plants that were treated with 300 μM α-ionone. Damage: The western flower thrips feeds on the flowers and foliage by inserting its modified left mandible into the tissue, and sucking the fluids from cells. This cosmopolitan and polyphagous invader is abundant in many field and greenhouse crops. Both viruses affect a wide range of plants, and often a single host plant may be infected by both viruses. Management. Western flower thrips will ⦠Western flower thrips feeds on apple, apricot, peach, plum, nectarine, orange, lemon, alfalfa, potato and numerous weed species. It was collected on 64 plant species, all of which were hosts for WFT. Rearing of Western Flower Thrips.A culture ofF. TSWV is a tospovirus spread by western flower thrips, onion thrips (see Fact Sheet no. Onion thrips is a key pest of onions, but will also attack the young growth of capsicum, cucumbers and the flowers of some flower crops. Damage. Based on pesticide resistance studies, western flower thrips has various metabolic detoxification enzyme systems that could help it to overcome secondary plant defenses (Jensen 2000; Espinosa et al. Western flower thrips attack a wide range of plants including: carnations, chrysanthemums, corn, cotton, cucumbers, eggplants, gerberas, grapes, impatiens, melons, peaches, peanuts, peas, and peppers. To avoid misunderstand-ings and misinterpretations, it is clear that the term âhost plantâ must be applied in the proper context. Other thrips will attach the following host plants - annual asters, dahlias, gladioluses, lilies, tuberous begonias and wax begonias. Distribution and host range. α-Ionone decreased the number of eggs laid by female thrips on wild-type leaves (Figure 4; p < 0.005, t = 2.56, df = 18). The egg is cylindrical and slightly kidney shaped. Host plant resistance to western flower thrips (WFT) in chrysanthemum was studied in several stages of plant development. Western flower thrips, Frankliniella occidentalis, is a worldwide pest with a wide range of host plants, the main ones being vegetable crops such as sweet peppers, strawberries, melons, cucumbers, eggplant, beans and tomatoes, as well as field crops, flowers, fruit trees, citrus and many ornamental plants. As these parts of the plant grow, they can become severely deformed. Western Flower Thrips John P. Sanderson Introduction. Successful IPM programmes for management of western flower thrips (WFT), Frankliniella occidentalis, on UK strawberry crops have been developed using knowledge of its biology and behaviour (Bennison Crops attacked by this pest include beans, burdock (gobo), capsicum, cucumber, eggplant, lettuce, onion, tomatoes and watermelon. Abstract. This species of thrips is native to the Southwestern United States but has spread to other continents, including Europe, Australia (where it was identified in May 1993), and South America via transport of infested plant material. Western flower thrips can damage flowers, such as roses, with petal discoloration as a result of thrips feeding. Western flower thrips have a broad host range of more than 500 species in 50 plant families and are associated with many cultivated crops and ornamentals. HOSTS. Western flower thrips, Frankliniella occidentalis, feeds in a piercing sucking manner and is a worldwide pest on many ornamental and vegetable crops. Damage includes feeding scars and leaf distortion (see Figures 9 and 10). Chlorogenic acid is involved in host plant resistance to Western Flower Thrips (Frankliniella occidentalis), one of the key agri- and horticultural pests worldwide. The objective of this study was to investigate quantitative host plant resistance to thrips in carrot and to identify candidate compounds for constitutive resistance. Host Plants: This thrips feeds on almost any flowering plant. western ï¬ower thrips. An infestation of Western Flower Thrips (WFT), Frankliniella occidentalis (Pergande), recently developed on young citrus trees in a greenhouse devoted to rearing Asian citrus psyllid (ACP), Diaphorina citri Kuwayama. Small spider immatures (first and second instars) of several species were common on certain host plants, and are likely to feed on WFT. Carnations, chrysanthemums, gerberas, geraniums, marigolds, pansies, and roses are the major host plants. WFT damage plants directly by feeding, and indirectly by acting as vectors for the tospoviruses impatiens necrotic spot virus (INSV) and tomato spotted wilt virus (TSWV). Feeding by these tiny insects causes plant cells to collapse, which may eventually result in distorted western flower thrips, Frankliniella occidentalis (Pergande), one of the most destructive insect pests of greenhouse-grown crops. 1 INTRODUCTION. Western flower thrips (Frankliniella occidentalis) develops from an active larval stage through to a nonâfeeding, almost immobile, preâpupal and pupal stage. Scarring on avocados. The female makes an incision into the leaf, stem or fruit of plants with her serrated ovipositor and deposits a single egg. Western flower thrips, Frankliniella occidentalis P. (Thysanoptera: Thripidae) is a major agricultural and horticulture pest worldwide (Kirk, 2002; Kirk and Terry, 2003).It causes damage and spoilage to a vast number of economically important plant species through feeding, oviposition and spread of several plant diseases, most notably tospoviruses (Morse and Hoddle, 2006). Western flower thrips host plants include digitalis, tanacetums, lobelias, verbascums, stachys, and achilleas. The western flower thrips (Frankliniella occidentalis) is the most important vector for both tomato spotted wilt virus (TSWV) and impatiens necrotic spot virus (INSV). This generally occurs in the compost or soil below the plant on which the larvae fed. As a result, you typically see the damage they cause well before seeing the insects themselves. The behavioural responses of adult female western flower thrips, Frankliniella occidentalis (Pergande) to volatiles from meadow-sweet (Filipendula ulmaria), bay laurel (Laurus nobilis) and sage (Salvia officinalis) were investigated in laboratory bioassays. On avocados, thrips can cause brown or silver scarring on the fruit. The western flower thrips (Frankliniella occidentalis) is the most important vector for both tomato spotted wilt virus (TSWV) and impatiens necrotic spot virus (INSV). Onion thrips (Thrips tabaci), top, and western flower thrips (Frankliniella occidentalis), bottom are typical thrips, none to easy to tell apar! Heavily infested flower buds may not open at all, and fruit can be damaged, even with low thrips populations. The maxillae then ingest the fluids from the cells, but not directly from the vascular tissue. Western flower thrips prefer to feed on developing plant tissues, such as growing tips and flower buds. Western flower thrips has a punching-sucking feeding habit, using the mandible to punch a hole into the host and then inserting the maxillae into the opening. Unfortunately, there is little basic ecophysiology information on the response of western flower thrips to host plant chemistry. Thrips can feed on different parts of the plant; leaves, stems, flowers and fruits. Female adult western ï¬ower thrips of different age were randomly collected with a small aspi- One hundred thirty species of native and introduced plants growing in uncultivated land adjacent to apple and pear orchards of central Washington and northern Oregon were sampled for the presence of the western flower thrips (WFT) Frankliniella occidentalis (Pergande, 1895) and potential thrips predators. 106); however, the western flower thrips is the more important vector. Western flower thrips (WFT), Frankliniella occidentalis (Pergande), forms a key agriâ and horticultural pest worldwide. to select for host plant resistance or tolerance . On leaves thrips can ingest the cell contents of The platform was used to establish host-plant preference of thrips with a large plant population of 345 wild Arabidopsis accessions (the Arabidopsis HapMap population) and the method was optimized with two extreme accessions from this population that differed in resistance to thrips. Because of its polyphagous feeding and breed-ing behavior, western ï¬ower thrips is exposed to a broad diversity of plant allelochemicals (Feyere-isen 1999). To western flower thrips host plants - annual asters, dahlias, gladioluses, lilies, tuberous begonias and begonias. They cause well before seeing the insects themselves by western flower thrips, Frankliniella continues. And flower buds may not open at all, and often a single host plant resistance to flower... 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