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The status and dispersal of Aulacaspis yasumatsui Takagi, 1977 (Hemiptera: Diaspididae) on Okinawa and neighboring islands, Japan

Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: Cycas revoluta Thunb.became infested with Aulacaspis yasumatsui Takagi (Hemiptera: Diaspididae) in Kunigami Village, Okinawa Island in 2023, following an earlier report of an infestation in Amami-Oshima, Japan.Cycas revoluta plants are often commercially sold at plant nurseries and fairs throughout Okinawa Island.Prior to the invasion by A. yasumatsui, the most common pest of C. revoluta on Okinawa Island was the cycad blue butterfly, Luthrodes pandava (Horsfield), which continues to cause significant herbivory throughout the island.We report on the distribution of and damage by A. yasumatsui on Okinawa Island and the insect's possible dispersal by hitchhiking on humans and adult L. pandava and inter-island movement of C. revoluta plants.The capacity to control infested plants is also addressed.A total of 1,426 plants were surveyed on the islands of Ie, Iheya, Kurima, Tarama, and Okinawa Island, and nearby islands; 536 infested plants were detected only on Okinawa Island.Aulacaspis yasumatsui has spread to natural habitats and throughout urban areas.No evidence was found of A. yasumatsui crawlers hitchhiking on the bodies of adult L. pandava.Sustained insect control efforts by individual managers will play a critical role in limiting the spread of A. yasumatsui.Quarantine measures for imported cycad plants in newly invaded countries and initial management of A. yasumatsui populations in newly infested communities are imperative.
DOI: 10.3391/bir.2026.15.3.17
Authors: Satoshi Tsujimoto, Benjamin Deloso, Ronald Cave, Yositaka Sakamaki, Seiya Nagata, Norikazu Kameyama, Hisaki Horie, Ayaka Tsujimoto, Shotaro Miyano, Yasuko Ito-Inaba, Hirotaka Tanaka, Thomas Marler
Institutions: Okinawa Churashima Foundation, University of Florida, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, Kagoshima University, University of the Ryukyus, Kyushu Kyoritsu University, Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, University of Oxford, University of Miyazaki, Kyushu University, Ehime University, The Kyushu University Museum, Kyushu University, International Union for Conservation of Nature, IUCN Species Survival Commission
Language: English
Subfield: Insect Science
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $323
OpenAlex ID: W7204041376
FWCI:
Cites: 15
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Related to: 10