Nipponaclerda biwakoensis

Nipponaclerda biwakoensis is a scale insect originally described from Japan, and naturally occurring in China; in these countries it is most often associated with reeds in the genus Phragmites.^[1] This species has become established (as of 2017) in the United States in the state of Louisiana, where it has rapidly become a serious pest of roseau cane, damaging over 80% of the reeds in some areas such as the Pass a Loutre Wildlife Management Area,^[2] where it is referred to by the older common name Phragmites scale insect or the more recently-coined name, roseau cane mealybug.^[3] Several species of parasitoid wasps are known to attack this scale,^[1] with initial investigations focusing on the species Neastymachus japonicus, known only to attack this one pest.^[2]

Impact

While Phragmites is often considered a noxious weed,^[4] in Louisiana the reed beds, dubbed "roseau cane", are critical to the stability of the shorelines of wetland areas and waterways of the Mississippi Delta, and the die-off of reed beds is believed to accelerate coastal erosion.^[2]

References