Ecobreves – CUBA: Plague Threatens Forests

By IPS Correspondents and - - Reprint | | Print |

HAVANA -, May 12 2002 (IPS) - A plague of 'chinches harinosas' (mealybug, or Maconellicoccus hirsutus), encouraged by drought and warm temperatures, has endangered the fruit, ornamental and ligneous trees in the Cuban capital. The insects first damage the leaves, then move to the branches and on to the trunk, until completely destroying the tree. However, they could be eliminated very easily by the rainfall that normally occurs in May.

But the delay in precipitation has prompted the authorities to use biological controls against the plague in the hardest hit areas. The effort involves the 'cotorrita', or Cryptolaemus montrouzieri, also known simply as a mealybug destroyer, an exotic species that must also be closely monitored due to its potential impact on the environment.