Aleurocanthus woglumi (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) in Citrus: Opportunities and Challenges to Implement a Sustainable Management

Citrus BlackFly (CBF) always represented a threat to Brazil. The impact of the introduction in Brazil of the CBF has led to serious economic and environmental consequences. In this chapter, we will show relevant information on biological aspects, history of occurrence, and impact of CBF on Citrus in Brazil; data about dynamics populations and spatial distribution patterns and dependence will be presented. We are intending to emphasize in this chapter the main challenges and opportunities of some important tactics to promote sustainable management of CBF in citrus, such as: (i) biological control, (ii) chemical and others methods, and (iii) induced resistance

Prevalence and Factors Associated with Leishmania infantum Infection of Dogs from an Urban Area of Brazil as Identified by Molecular Methods

Visceral leishmaniasis (VL) is a disease caused by the parasite Leishmania infantum, and dogs are the most important domestic reservoirs of the agent. During recent decades, VL has expanded to large Brazilian urban centers. In the present work, we have demonstrated by using molecular techniques that the rate of canine infection as detected by serology has been considerably underestimated. Two groups of seronegative dogs (infected and non-infected according to molecular methods) were further evaluated from data obtained through interviews with owners of the animals. The factors associated with Leishmania infection in dogs were a family income of less than two minimum salaries, the knowledge of the owner regarding the vector, the dog spending most of its time in the backyard and the dog never having had a previous serological examination. Awareness regarding the factors associated with canine infection will improve health services and the understanding of the disease's expansion in urban areas

Within-plant distribution of cotton aphid (Hemiptera: Aphididae) in cotton cultivars with colored fibers

We describe the vertical and horizontal distribution of the cotton aphid Aphis gossypii Glover within a cotton plant in two cotton (Gossypium hirsutum Linnaeus) cultivars (BRS Safira and BRS Rubí) with colored fiber over the time. Measurements of aphid population dynamics and distribution in the cotton plants were recorded in intervals of seven days. The number of apterous or alate aphids and their specific locations were recorded, using as a reference point the location of nodes on the mainstem of the plant and also those on the leaves present on branches and fruit structures. The number of apterous aphids found on the cultivar BRS Safira (56,515 aphids) was greater than that found on BRS Rubí (50,537 aphids). There was no significant difference between the number of alate aphids found on the cultivars BRS Safira (365 aphids/plant) and BRS Rubí (477 aphids/ plant). There were interactions between cotton cultivar and plant age, between plant region and plant age, and between cultivar and plant region for apterous aphids. The results of this study are of great importance in improving control strategies for A. gossypii in the naturally-colored cotton cultivars BRS Safira and BRS Rubí