Pest monographs are short summaries organized by common pest name in alphabetical order. If you have any questions or additional information about a particular pest, please email us at

Pest Monographs


 (multiple species)

Aphid species are numerous and highly destructive to crops. They multiply quickly and in some cases are vectors of disease.

Close up banded cucumber beetle adult on common sunflower

Banded Cucumber Beetle

Diabrotica balteata

Banded Cucumber Beetle adults eat holes in leaves and pods of host plants. Larva feed on roots. It is a vector of bacterial wilt disease in cucurbits and viral diseases in beans.

Beet armyworm larva

Beet Armyworm

Spodoptera exigua

Beet Armyworm is a crop pest that (along with its cousin, the fall armyworm) can devastate a crop within days of first being detected. It is a larval form in the lepidoptera family.

Adult boll weevil

Boll Weevil

Anthonomus grandis

Boll Weevil is a pest that has been plaguing cotton for as long as it has been grown, Eradication programs in the US and Mexico have reduced, but not eliminated the threat.

Adult citrus blackfly close up

Citrus Blackfly

Aleurocanthas woglumi

Citrus Blackfly has over 300 hosts, but prefers citrus. Adults and nymphs suck plant sap and secrete “honeydew” that promotes the growth of sooty mold.

Adult citrus root weevil on leaf

Citrus Root Weevil

Diaprepes abbreviatus

Citrus Root Weevil larval stage feeds on roots, increasing vulnerability of root systems to Phytopthora and other soil borne diseases. Adults create semi-circular feeding pattern on edges of leaves.

citrus rust mite

Citrus Rust Mite

Phyllocoptruta oleivora

Citrus rust mite can not be seen with unaided human eye. Present throughout the year, but peak populations usually occur in June and July.

Adult colorado potato beetle

Colorado Potato Beetle

Leptinotarsa decemlineata

Colorado Potato Beetle is an important pest of potatoes. It is difficult and expensive to control.

Adult cotton boll worm on a flower

Cotton Bollworm

Helicoverpa zea

Cotton Bollworm is a significant pest of cotton. It is a larval stage in the lepidoptera order, and is also known as the tomato fruitworm and corn earworm.

Adult cowpea curculio on the common bean

Cowpea Curculio

Chalcodermus aeneus

Cowpea Cucurlio primarily feed on various legumes, but can be found on cotton, soybean, and strawberry among other plants.

European corn borer adults

European Corn Borer

Ostrinia nubilalis

The european corn borer is one of the US and Canada’s most damaging pest which infest at least 250 plants including corn, beans, pepper, and potato.

Fall armyworm larva in bermudagrass

Fall Armyworm

Spodoptera  frugiperda

Fall Armyworm is a crop pest that (along with its cousin, the beet armyworm) can devastate a crop within days of first being detected. It is a larval form in the lepidoptera family.

Adult tobacco flea beetle (Epitrix hirtipennis)

Flea Beetles

Aphthona spp.

Flea Beetles include a wide variety of species given the name due to their ability to jump from predators or other disturbances.

Adult glassy-winged sharpshooter on leaf

Glassy-winged Sharpshooter

Homalodisca vitripennis

The glassy-winged sharphooter preferred hosts include citrus, holly, sunflower, and crape myrtle and is found from east Texas as far west as Val Verde county.

Adult harlequin bug close up

Harlequin Bug

Murgantia histrionica

The harlequin bug has the ability to destroy entire crops if left uncontrolled. Its preferred crops are horseradish, cabbage, cauliflower, collards, mustard, brussels sprouts, turnip, kohlrabi and radish.

Adult leaf-footed bug on leaf

Leaf-footed Bug

Leptoglossus phyllopus

This pest is a piercing, sucking insect that discolors and/or distorts normal growth in fruit and seeds.  Its primary weed host is thistle, but can also be found on jimsonweed, goldenrod, and elderberry, as well as many other agricultural crops.

Lygus lineolaris (tarnished plant bug) on daisy fleabane


Lygus hesperus   Lygus lineolaris   Lygus elisus

Over half of the cultivated plant species grown in the U.S. are hosts of lygus. Adults and nymphs pierce flower and fruiting structures causing great damage.

infestation of the citrus mealybug



Mealybugs are soft-bodied scale like insects that have a wide variety of hosts and are closely related to whiteflies, aphids, and scale insects.

Adult plum curculio close up

Plum Curculio

Conotrachelus nenuphar

Plum Curculio is a devastating pest of stone fruits, especially peaches and plums

alate adult, Russian Wheat Aphid

Russian Wheat Aphid

Diuraphis noxia

Russian Wheat Aphid can be a devastating pest of wheat in the Great Plains. It characteristically causes the wheat leaf to curl or roll, protecting the aphid infestation from enemies.

Silverleaf whitefly adult one-sixteenth-inch long

Silverleaf Whitefly

Bemesia argentifolii

Silverleaf Whitefly is an economically important pest that attacks a variety of food and fiber crops. It is a special problem for the cucurbit family, where it is an important vector of disease.

Adult southwestern corn borer

Southwestern Corn Borer

Diatraea grandiosella

Southwestern corn borer relatively has few host plants. Hosts include: corn, milo, maize, and sorghum. Preferred host is corn (Zea mays).

Spotted cucumber beetle on pumpkin.

Spotted Cucumber Beetle

Diabrotica undecimpunctata howardi

The spotted cucumber beetle is a vector for bacterial wilt disease (Erwinia tracheiphila) in most cucurbits and cucumber mosaic virus.

adult striped cucumber beetle close up

Striped Cucumber Beetle

Acalymma vittatum


tomato pinworm

Tomato Pinworm

Keiferia lycopersicella

Tomato pinworm damage can be confused with that of leafminers and potato tuberworms. Their feeding damage can make hosts vulnerable to secondary infections by various plant pathogens.

Adult western flower thrips (Frankliniella occidentalis).

Western Flower Thrips

Frankliniella occidentalis

Western Flower Thrips’ (WFT) function as a vector for the topsoviruses tomato spotted wilt virus (TSWV) and impatiens necrotic wilt virus (INWV).