Tingids, virus vectors, Sudan

December 2011. A member from Sudan asked if tingid bugs are vectors of virus diseases.

The answer is “yes”. Some Heteroptera are vectors of plant diseases, although not as commonly as other members of the the Hemiptera (former Homoptera). See: Mitchell Paul L (2004) Heteroptera as vectors of plant pathogens. Neotropical Entomology 33(5) (www.scielo.br/scielophp?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1519-566X2004000500001).

The tingid Stephanitis typica (Distant) which is a pest of coconut as well as banana is reported as the vector of root wilt in coconut in Kerala, Southern India. This disease is associated with a phytoplasma.

Another example is the transmission of beet leaf curl disease by the tingid, Piesma quadratum, in Europe. The same vector is responsible for the transmission of beet latent rosette disease, said to be a rickettsia-like organism.