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Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Hexapods (Hexapoda) » Insects (Insecta) » True Bugs, Cicadas, Hoppers, Aphids and Allies (Hemiptera) » Plant-parasitic Hemipterans (Sternorrhyncha) » Aleyrodoidea » Whiteflies (Aleyrodidae)

Family Aleyrodidae - Whiteflies

Classification · Synonyms and other taxonomic changes · Explanation of Names · Numbers · Size · Identification · Range · Food · Life Cycle · Print References · Works Cited
Crown Whitefly pupa on live oak - Aleuroplatus coronata Singhiella simplex Solanum aleyrodidae Whiteflies Cabbage Whitefly? Aleuroplatus? Fly Weymouth Woods whitefly on Euphorbia curtisii 2023 1
Classification
Kingdom Animalia (Animals)
Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Subphylum Hexapoda (Hexapods)
Class Insecta (Insects)
Order Hemiptera (True Bugs, Cicadas, Hoppers, Aphids and Allies)
Suborder Sternorrhyncha (Plant-parasitic Hemipterans)
Superfamily Aleyrodoidea
Family Aleyrodidae (Whiteflies)
Synonyms and other taxonomic changes
overview in(1)
Explanation of Names
Aleyrodidae Westwood 1840
Numbers
~1,600 spp. in ~160 genera total(2)(3)
Size
Usually <3 mm
Identification
Adults are winged and covered with white dust or waxy powder. Identification to genus or species usually requires close examination of so-called pupa (inactive last nymphal stage).
Keys in (3)(4) (based on pupae)
Range
worldwide
Food
Feed on leaves • Symbiotic proteobacterium Portiera aleyrodidarum helps the insect get amino acids(5)
Life Cycle
First instar nymphs are active, subsequent instars are sessile and look like scales. The final stages feed for a short time then have an extended non-feeding period during which the pharate adult develops.
Print References
Bemis, Florence E. (1904). The Aleyrodids, or mealy-winged flies, of California, with references to other American species. Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., 27: 471-537 (Full Text)
Brown, Leland R. & Eads, Clark O. (1965). A technical study of insects affecting the oak tree in southern California. Calif. Agric. Experiment Stat. 105 pp. (Full Text)
Gill, R. J. ; Walker, G. P., Honda, J. Y. (2010). Redescription of two live oak-infesting whiteflies in California. Pan-Pacific Entomologist 86(3):72-91. (Full Text)
Mound, L. A. & Halsey, S. H. (1978). Whitefly of the world: a systematic catalogue of the Aleyrodidae (Homoptera) with host plant and natural enemy data. British Museum & Wiley, 340 pp. (Full Text)
Nakahara, S. (1995). Taxonomic Studies of the Genus Tetraleurodes (Homoptera: Aleyrodidae). Insecta Mundi 9(1-2): 105-150. (Full Text)
Penny, D. D. 1922. A catalog of the California Aleyrodidae and the description of four new species. Journal of Entomology and Zoology 14: 21-35. (Full Text)
Quaintance, A. L. (1900). Contribution towards a monograph of the American Aleurodidae. Technical Series, Bureau of Entomology, United States Department of Agriculture. 8: 9-64. (Full Text)
Quaintance, A. L. & Baker, A. C. (1913). Classification of the Aleyrodidae, Part I. Tech. Ser. Bur. Ent. U.S. 27: 1-93. (Full Text)
Quaintance, A. L. & Baker, A. C. (1914). Classification of the Aleyrodidae, Part II. Tech. Ser. Bur. Ent. U.S. 27: 95-109. (Full Text)
Works Cited
1.The whiteflies (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) of the world and their host plants and natural enemies
G. A. Evans. 2007. USDA/Animal Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS).
2.Evans G.A., Hamon A.B. (2002) Whitefly taxonomic and ecological website: An on-line interactive catalog of the whiteflies...
3.Dooley J. (2011) Whitefly pupa of the world. Compendium and key to the genera of the Aleurodicinae & the Aleyrodinae
4.An identification guide to the whiteflies (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) of the southeastern United States
Hodges G.S., Evans G.A. 2005. Fla. Entomol. 88: 518-534.
5.The Insects : Structure and Function
R. F. Chapman. 1998. Cambridge University Press.
Contributed by Hannah Nendick-Mason on 13 September, 2004 - 6:17pm
Additional contributions by cotinis, Beatriz Moisset, Aaron Schusteff, ceiseman, v belov, Marci Hess
Last updated 17 July, 2024 - 8:22pm

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