Morphological and molecular identification of Dysmicoccus brevipes (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae) in Costa Rica

Abstract

The aim of the present study was to identify the species of mealybug from Rebusca Farm in Sarapiqui, Costa Rica. Light microscopy and molecular analysis were done. The microscopy analysis was performed at the Center for Research on Microscopic Structures, and the molecular analysis was carried out at the Molecular Phytopathology Laboratory, at the University of Costa Rica. After analyze the insects, was possible to associate it to the species Dysmicoccus brevipes Cockerell, due to: the morphology of the body, mouthparts, antennae segments, presence of translucent pores, description of hind legs, ostioles, circulus and cerarii. In the molecular data, BLAST hits from GenBank revealed similarities of between 92-100% to the species D. brevipes to the studied genes (18S, E.F-1α and COXI). Until the date, this species had been associated to pineapple crop. This study evidence the risk of the pest to be disseminated and to search other hosts for food.