Protecting Vegetable Crops from Thrips parvispinus
Thrips parvispinus, an invasive insect pest, is causing millions of dollars in losses to U.S. vegetable crops. The pest was originally reported in Florida in 2020 and has since spread to seven states, including Colorado, Georgia, Hawaii, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and South Carolina. Initial data suggests that while T. parvispinus primarily affects Florida’s $187 million pepper industry, the pest is also present in eggplant, cucumber, squash, as well as ornamental plants like gardenia, mandevilla and hibiscus.
To provide producers with management strategies, researchers led by Dr. De-Fen Mou, assistant professor of entomology at the University of Florida, are monitoring T. parvispinus in vegetable crops to better understand how and why it chooses host crops. Additionally, the research team aims to identify an effective chemical control program by evaluating insecticide efficacy in peppers.