Insect Pests of Fruit, Plantation, Medicinal & Aromatic Crops (2+1)

2. Grapevine thrips

2. Grapevine thrips - Rhipiphorothrips cruentatus Hood.
(Heliothripidae: Thysanotptera)

Damage

• Both nymphs and adults lacerate/scrape the epidermis of leaves and suck the sap due to laceration silvery patches.
• Infest the under surface of leaves and suck the cell sap.
• The infestation resulted in development of silvery white scorchy patches on the leaves.
• The attacked vine either does not bear fruits or the fruit drop off prematurely.
• It lays bean shaped eggs on the under surface of leaves.
• The fecundity of the hopper is 50 eggs per female.
• The eggs period is 3-8 days.
• The nymphs are small yellowish brown in colour.
• The nymphal period last for 9-20 days.
• The pupal period is 2-5 days.
• On emergence of adults both sexual and parthenogenetic reproduction takes place simultaneously.