Diaphorina citri Kuwayama (Hemiptera: Psyllidae) is an important worldwide pest of citrus that vectors bacteria (Candidatus Liberibacter spp.) responsible for huanglongbing (citrus greening disease). We examined the behavioral responses of mated and unmated D. citri of both sexes to odors from host plants in a Y-tube olfactometer, with and without visual cues. The host plants tested were 'Duncan' grapefruit (Citrus paradisi Macfayden), sour orange (Citrus aurantium L.), navel orange (C. sinensis L.), and Murraya paniculata L. Jack. Responses varied by plant species, psyllid sex and mating status, and the presence of a visual cue. Evidence of attraction generally was stronger in females and in mated individuals of both sexes relative to virgins. The presence of a visual cue typically enhanced attractiveness of olfactory cues; in no case did unmated individuals show evidence of attraction to host plant odors in the absence of avisual cue. In the absence of visual cues, mated females and males showed evidence of attraction only to odors from sour orange and navel orange, respectively. Psyllids exhibited anemotactic responses when assayed with plant odors alone but showed strong evidence of attraction only when olfactory and visual cues were combined, suggesting that olfactory cues facilitate orientation to host plants but may be insufficient alone. Antennal responses to citrus volatiles were confirmed by electroantennogram. The results reported here provide evidence that D. citri uses olfactory and visual cues in orientation to host plants and suggest the possibility of using plant volatiles in monitoring and management of this pest.
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Diaphorina citri Kuwayama (Hemiptera: Psyllidae) is an important worldwide pest of citrus. It vectors three phloem‐restricted bacteria in the genus Candidatus Liberibacter that cause huanglongbing (citrus greening disease). Studies were conducted to examine the behavioral responses of male and female D. citri to conspecifics of the same and opposite sex, with and without associated citrus host plants, in both open‐air arena choice assays and Y‐tube olfactometer assays. Virgin and mated male D. citri colonized citrus plants that were currently or had been previously colonized by virgin or mated female D. citri in greater numbers than control plants without females. However, males or females did not accumulate more on plants colonized by conspecifics of the same sex compared to uninfested plants, and females showed no preference for plants pre‐infested with males compared with uninfested controls. In complementary Y‐tube olfactometer assays, virgin and mated males chose arms with odor sources from mated females compared with blank controls in the absence of associated citrus host plant volatiles. In both behavioral assays, mated female D. citri appeared more attractive than virgin females. The vibrational calling behavior of male D. citri was reduced when males were challenged by the odors of conspecific mated females relative to when males were challenged by the odor of other males. Collectively, our results provide behavioral evidence for a female‐produced volatile sex attractant pheromone in D. citri. Future identification and synthesis of a sex attractant pheromone will be an important contribution to current monitoring and management practices for D. citri.
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