Serangga Perosak Tanaman - TERITIP / INSECT AND MITE PESTS - THRIPS

Teritip - Teritip adalah sejenis serangga penghisap yang tinggal dan bertelur di permukaan daun, kelopak bunga atau batang yang lembut. Kepompong teritip akan menghisap cecair tumbuhan, mematikan sel-sel tanaman dan menjadikannya bertukar kepada warna kelabu perak, menghilangkan klorofil daun dan mengurangkan fotosintesis. Ia juga merosakkan buah (terutamanya tomato, timun dan lada benggala). Ia juga akan memindahkan virus yang akan menyerang buah terutamanya pada tomato (lihat gambar di bawah).

Kawalan/Musuh semulajadi: Kumbang pemusnah (Lihat gambar di bawah) adalah musuh utama Teritip. Ia adalah sejenis kumbang bersaiz kecil yang memiliki tubuh yang leper dan mulut yang tersembol keluar yang digunakan untuk menghisap kepompong dan tubuh Teritip Saya mencadangkan penggunaan serangga pemangsa sebagai kawalan. Hanya jika ia tidak dapat dikawal, barulah anda boleh menggunakan racun serangga. Racun serangga perosak yang sesuai untuk mengawal Teritip antaranya ialah Minyak Putih, Albolineum No 2 atau Malathion (Racun sentuh). Anda haruslah menggunakannya dengan berhati-hati dan berkala serta elakkan dari membunuh serangga pemangsa yang bermanfaat..

Thrips (Thrips tabaci, T. fuscipennis and Frankliniella occidentalis):
*Appearance: 6 legs (smallest of the winged insects); long and narrow; tan.
*Life cycle: 6 stages:
Egg - laid inside the leaf surface, flower petals or soft stems – causes small warts on sweet pepper leaves.
2 larval stages – these are very active and feed on all aerial parts of the plant. After these stages they drop to the ground and pupate.
2 pupal stages – these stages do not feed. Wing stumps begin to form. Adult – has two pairs of wings. Young thrips resemble adults in shape but are yellow in colour and wingless. Adult males are pale yellow in colour; females vary from pale yellow to dark brown and are larger than males.
BODY LENGTH: Adult - 1.2 mm; Mature nymph- 1.0 mm. .

*Damage: Larvae pierce and suck out cell contents; cells die and turn silvery gray. Loss of chlorophyll; decreased photosynthesis; brittle leaves. Black spots appear – these are the excrement of the thrips. Also damage to fruit (tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers) and flowers.
Tomato Spotted Wilt Virus: is acquired by the larvae during feeding on infected plants but TSWV is transmitted exclusively by the adults.
*Control/Natural enemies:
Predatory mites (Amblyseius barkeri and A.cucumeris) eat thrips. They are shipped in “sachets” with “grain mites” (plant/fungus feeders and food for the beneficials to eat during shipping). Hang sachets in the crop for a max. of 2 weeks and then removed to avoid grain mite
infestation on the plants. (Grain mites: see Eriophyid mites below) Predatory bugs of the genus Orius with flattened bodies and protruding mouth parts for sucking the juices from the thrips body.
Verticillium lecanii: a fungus that parasitizes and ultimately kills thrips.This fungus does not harm other natural enemies of the thrips.


The impact of Thrips attack on plants and crops. Tomato plants is Thrip's favourites