A report released on Mar. 30 describes how lygus bugs are damaging yellow rose buds, with experts from the University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources providing details about the pest’s habits and effects.
The presence of lygus bugs is significant because these insects feed on buds, fruit, and young shoots of various plants, which can affect gardens and agricultural production. According to the UC Statewide Integrated Pest Management Program (UC IPM), at least 19 species of lygus occur in California.
Lygus bugs are small insects belonging to the Miridae family. The adult lygus bug measures between one-fifth to one-fourth inch long and has a distinctive triangle-shaped mark (scutellum) on its back. The coloration varies depending on whether they have overwintered or developed during the current season. “Adult lygus bugs are 1/5 to 1/4 inch long. They are about one-half as wide and have a flattened upper side. Lygus species have a distinctive contrastingly colored triangle (scutellum) in the middle of the back where the wings attach. Individuals that overwintered are more dark, generally dark brown to reddish in comparison to individuals that matured from eggs laid during the current growing season,” according to UC IPM.
The life cycle includes overwintering as adults in plant debris or protected places, with females laying eggs in late winter when temperatures rise. As herbaceous plants dry up outside cultivated areas, adult lygus migrate to irrigated plants such as roses for feeding and reproduction. “Feeding damage begins in the spring when adults lay eggs and suck and feed on shoot tips,” UC IPM says. “Later these shoot tips droop, wilt, and die. This can result in growth from lateral buds that appears bushy and distorted.”
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German entomologist Carl Wilhelm Hahn named the Lygus genus in 1831; possible origins include Greek words referring either to willow twigs or something flat or equal.