The cassava mealybug is pinkish in colour. Its body is surrounded by very short filaments, and covered with a fine coating of wax. Adults are 0.5 – 1.4mm long. (c) G. Goergen (Courtesy of EcoPort, www.ecoport.org)
Parasitic wasp of mealybugs (c) A.M. Varela, icipe
Mealybug infestation on lower leaf surface of cassava plant (c) A.A. Seif
Larger grain borer
Larger grain borer(Prostephanus truncatus). The adult beetle is 3-4.5 mm long. (c) NRI/MAFF. Reproduced from the Crop Protection Compendium, 2004 Edition. (c) CAB International, Wallingford, UK, 2004
Birds and other vertebrate pests
Red-Billed Quelae Bird is one of the most dangerous of all agricultural pests in Africa, and causes food shortages in many countries. The flock breeds at times of abundant rainfall and young are ready to move with the nomadic flock within six weeks,often coinciding with the ripening of grain crops. A nesting colony of Red-billed quelea can extend over hundreds of acres, and a single flock may number millions of birds, moving together in a synchronized fashion. Recent discussions about quelea bird pest control have started to turn towards prediction of breeding based on weather patterns (c) Courtesy EcoPort (http://www.ecoport.org) : C.Elliott.
Red-Billed Quelae Bird Nest The nest is made in the form of a pouch with a roof and an entrance near the top. The male is responsible for the construction which is completed by a remarkable technique of weaving strips of grass back and forth to form a mesh-like structure. This is why the quelea bird is called a ‘weaver bird’. If the nest is accepted by a female, she will enter and in due course produce a clutch of three eggs. (c) Courtesy EcoPort (http://www.ecoport.org) : C.Elliott
Wild Rat (c) Reg Mckenna, wikipedia
Free-range pig keeping (c) S. Gikonyo, Kenya
Angora and Galla goats (c) Anne Bruntse, BioVision
Striped mealybug
Striped mealybug(Ferrisia virgata) (c) F. Haas, icipe
Cassava green spider mite
Cassava green mite(Mononychellus tanajoa) and eggs. Real size 0.8 mm, egg 0.2 mm. (c) F. Haas, icipe
Damage by the cassava green mite(Mononychellus tanajoa) (c) A. M. Varela, icipe
Red spider mites
Two-spotted spider mite (Tetranychus urticae) . The adult female is 0.6 mm long. The male is smaller. (c) Warwick HRI, University of Warwick
Cassava scales
Scale insect. This is not the cassava scale, but an armored scale (related species) (c) USDA ARS, Bugwood.org
Grasshoppers
Variegated grasshopper(Zonocerus variegatus) (c) Georg Goergen (Courtesy of EcoPort, www.ecoport.org)
Whiteflies
Whiteflies on chilli leaf. Adults are about 1mm long. (c) B. Nyambo, A. A. Seif, icipe
Whiteflies egg laying on lower leaf surface of cassava plant (c) A.A. Seif
Termites
Close-up termites on mango stem.(Coptotermes formosanus) (c) A. M. Varela, icipe
Storage pests
Lesser grain borer(Rhyzopertha dominica). Adults are 2-3 mm in length and reddish-brown in colour (shown on wheat grains). (c) Clemson University – USDA Cooperative Extension Slide Series, United States, bugwood.org
Damage to cassava chips by Larger Grain Borer (c) GTZ
