Mulberry Whitefly – Tetraleurodes mori

Mulberry Whitefly (Tetraleurodes mori)

Common Name: Mulberry Whitefly

Latin Name: Tetraleurodes mori

Appearance:

• The adult female is powdered yellow with brownish-red eyes and looks like a little moth.
• The wings have a lot of dark dots on them and are somewhat roof-like over the abdomen while at rest.
• The pupa is the most distinct stage of this species, with an oval, glossy, dark black body encircled by a white fringe of long wax strands more than half the pupa’s width.
• Some white wax spots emerge on the body’s dorsal surface.

Host plant:

Mulberry is the only known host in Colorado. It has been observed in various deciduous trees, including hackberry, maple, dogwood, and sycamore.

Territory:

It is most likely native to the United Places, where it may be found in Florida, Tennessee, and California, as well as other states where citrus and other host plants are present.

Damages caused by Mulberry Whitefly:

This beetle is not known to cause considerable harm to mulberry trees. However, the distinctive look of the nymphs adhering on the underside of leaves – a jet-black “whitefly” surrounded by a white fringe – draws attention.

Life history and habits:

Females implant only the tip of their eggs a little way into the bottom surfaces of leaves. About two weeks later, little yellow nymphs called crawlers emerge from the eggs, moving around until settling down to insert their mouthparts to eat. They will remain in the same location until the new adult mulberry whiteflies emerge a month later. Nymphs grow bigger and darker with each molt, finally becoming glossy black with a prominent white fringe. This final stage is known as the pupa. Mulberry whiteflies are pale gray adults with dark gray dots, jagged lines, and patterns on their forewings. Whiteflies feed on leaf sap and emit honeydew (a sweet, sticky liquid in which sooty molds often grow).