Pest Never Seen in North America Before Detected in Texas
The Texas Department of Agriculture shared this photo of the invasive insects. (Texas Department of Agriculture/Stephen Biles)
Texas is confronting a new insect invader that could severely impact the state’s grazing and hay fields. The pasture mealybug, Helicococcus summervillei, previously unknown in North America, has now been confirmed in more than 20 Texas counties, prompting an urgent alert from the Texas Department of Agriculture, Fox News reports.
“This is a completely new pest to our continent, and Texas is once again on the front lines,” said Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller. “If the pasture mealybug spreads across Texas grazing lands like it has in eastern Australia, it could cost Texas agriculture dearly through lost productivity and reduced livestock capacity.”
First documented in Australia in 1928, the pasture mealybug is associated there with “pasture dieback” across millions of acres. The insect feeds at or just below the soil surface and within plant tissues, gradually weakening and killing grasses used for grazing and hay. Early signs of infestation include yellowing within a week, purpling or reddening leaves, stunted growth despite normal moisture, poor root development, and patchy thinning or dead areas. The insects themselves appear as small, white, cottony clusters on plants or plant debris. Authorities are urging ranchers to report any suspicious signs or insects to the TDA, the Houston Chronicle reports. “Early identification is critical, and we need every producer’s eyes on the ground,” Miller said.
Infestations have been confirmed in counties including Brazoria, Galveston, Wharton, Matagorda, and Victoria, with Victoria County reporting the heaviest losses so far. Researchers believe the bug may have been present in Texas since before 2022. There are currently no insecticides approved in the U.S. specifically for this species, so officials are focusing on tracking its spread and developing management strategies.
The Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service notes that fire ants, which feed on the honeydew some insects excrete, “are known to tend and protect many soft-bodied insects, such as mealybugs, from predators, and thus may exacerbate mealybug infestations.”
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