Trailers Transporting Oranges to Processing Plants Move Asian Citrus Psyllids

Huanglongbing (citrus greening) is one of the most serious diseases of citrus. Movement of the disease occurs as a result of natural transmission by the insect vector and by movement of infected plant material. We demonstrate here that Diaphorina citri Kuwayama, the vector of citrus greening pathogens, can be transported in trailers of unprocessed fruit. Several samples of D. citri collected from trailers of oranges were positive for citrus greening pathogens, indicating that the disease can spread widely with the movement of the mature fruit as a result of moving the vectors. While movement of disease and the vector through plant materials into new areas has been recognized, our findings emphasize the need to evaluate the importance of long distance movement of psyllids on unprocessed fruit, even in the absence of vegetative tissue.