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Species Page

chilli thrips

Scirtothrips dorsalis
On this page:
Distribution
Symptoms
Related treatment support
Host plants / species affected
Prevention and control
Impact
This information is part of a full datasheet available in the Crop Protection Compendium (CPC). Find out more information on how to access the CPC.
©CAB International. Published under a CC-BY-NC-SA 4.0 licence.

Distribution

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Extent
Invasive
Origin
Third party data sources:
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Host plants / species affected

Main hosts

show all species affected
Abelmoschus esculentus (okra)
Acacia auriculiformis (northern black wattle)
Acacia brownii
Actinidia deliciosa (kiwifruit)
Allium cepa (onion)
Allium cepa (onion)
Allium sativum (garlic)
Anacardium occidentale (cashew nut)
Arachis hypogaea (groundnut)
Asparagus officinalis (asparagus)
Beta vulgaris (beetroot)
Camellia sinensis (tea)
Capsicum annuum (bell pepper)
Capsicum frutescens (chilli)
Citrus
Citrus aurantiifolia (lime)
Citrus sinensis (sweet orange)
Cucurbita pepo (marrow)
Dahlia pinnata (garden dahlia)
Dimocarpus longan (longan tree)
Diospyros kaki (persimmon)
Fagopyrum esculentum (buckwheat)
Ficus
Fragaria (strawberry)
Fragaria ananassa (strawberry)
Fragaria chiloensis (Chilean strawberry)
Glycine max (soyabean)
Gossypium (cotton)
Gossypium hirsutum (Bourbon cotton)
Helianthus annuus (sunflower)
Hevea brasiliensis (rubber)
Hydrangea (hydrangeas)
Ipomoea batatas (sweet potato)
Lablab purpureus (hyacinth bean)
Mangifera indica (mango)
Melilotus indica (Indian sweetclover)
Mimosa (sensitive plants)
Morus (mulberrytree)
Nelumbo
Nelumbo lutea
Nelumbo nucifera (sacred lotus)
Nephelium lappaceum (rambutan)
Nicotiana tabacum (tobacco)
Nicotiana tabacum (tobacco)
Passiflora edulis (passionfruit)
Phaseolus vulgaris (common bean)
Populus deltoides (poplar)
Portulaca oleracea (purslane)
Prunus persica (peach)
Punica granatum (pomegranate)
Pyrus (pears)
Ricinus communis (castor bean)
Ricinus communis (castor bean)
Rubus (blackberry, raspberry)
Saraca
Solanum (nightshade)
Solanum lycopersicum (tomato)
Solanum nigrum (black nightshade)
Syzygium samarangense (water apple)
Tamarindus indica (tamarind)
Viburnum
Vigna radiata (mung bean)
Vitis (grape)
Vitis vinifera (grapevine)
Zea mays subsp. mays (sweetcorn)
Ziziphus mauritiana (jujube)

List of symptoms / signs

Growing point - dead heart
Growing point - distortion
Growing point - external feeding
Inflorescence - fall or shedding
Leaves - abnormal colours
Leaves - abnormal forms
Leaves - abnormal leaf fall
Leaves - external feeding
Leaves - wilting
Whole plant - distortion; rosetting
Whole plant - dwarfing
Whole plant - plant dead; dieback

Symptoms

As is typical of species in the genus Scirtothrips, eggs are laid in the youngest tissues of plants, and feeding by adults and larvae can result in extensive cell damage to these developing tissues, leading to leaf and fruit distortion, and flower fall.

A serious pest on castor, S. dorsalis infests shoots, leaves, flowers and young fruits. The growing tips, particularly the young leaves and axillary leaf branches, are the main targets of attack. The infested plant parts turn brown to black and in extreme cases there is total deformation and defoliation. Although infestation occurs throughout the year, it peaks during drier months.

On chillies S. dorsalis causes 'leaf curl disease'. The pest occurs in such large numbers that the young leaves shrivel; heavy infestation of the tender shoots, buds and flowers causes the leaves to curl badly and the leaves are shed, fresh buds becoming brittle, subsequently dropping down. The damage is essentially due to the retardation, and in some cases to the complete cessation, of the physiological functions of the leaves (Ramakrishna Ayyar and Subbiah, 1935). Ramakrishna Ayyar (1932) recorded this species as a major pest in southern India causing the so-called 'Murda disease', or dying back, of the young seedlings. S. dorsalis causes damage to almost any soft part of the plant particularly in the shoots and leaves. Damage ranges from the slight disruption of the tissues to total deformation and disruption. The growing tip of the plant and young leaves, especially the axillary leaves, are the main points of attack. The damage is due to continuous sucking of the cell sap, leading to necrosis of the cell tissues. Eggs are also laid inside the soft tissues and the larvae leave large circular holes causing deformation of plant parts. As a result the plants may remain stunted due to the defoliation and deformation of the leaves. Leaf curl disease is called 'mudatha' (leaf curl) or 'korivi' when the plant presents a stag-headed appearance (burnt faggot).

Dev (1964) recorded S. dorsalis on tea causing damage to buds, young leaves, tender shoots and occasionally to older leaves. The injured tissues turn brown and as a result of feeding in more or less continuous lines on the buds, marks appear as sand-paper lines in the epidermis of leaves. In acute infestations, the growth of the shoot is arrested, the leaves remain small, hard and brittle, and the affected leaves become crinkled and curly, and fall from the plant.

Heavy infestation of cotton plants at the early seedling stage, in particular the cotyledons and other young leaves, results in the leaves becoming brittle and falling prematurely. S. dorsalis is also evident in mixed cropping of cotton, chillies and onion. The incidence and infestation of this species in different ecological conditions in cotton fields is also known (Ananthakrishnan, 1969, 1971, 1984).

Prevention and control

Chemical Control

Due to the variable regulations around (de-)registration of pesticides, we are for the moment not including any specific chemical control recommendations. For further information, we recommend you visit the following resources:

Impact

Chillies suffer badly through heavy infestation by S. dorsalis of the tender shoot, buds and flowers. S. dorsalis is responsible for leaf curl disease of chillies. Heavy infestation causes the leaves to curl badly and the leaves to be shed, fresh buds become brittle and subsequently fall. During bad seasons, 25-55% of the total yield is lost (Ramakrishna Ayyar, 1932; Ramakrishna Ayyar and Subbiah, 1935).

Related treatment support

Tea yellow thrips host: tea.

Fan ChangQing; Xie Xin; CABI, 2020, Chinese language

Pest Management Decision Guides Chinese

Virus diseases on cucurbits (CMV, CGMMV, PRSV, TRSV, TORSV and ZYMV).

Marasinghe, J. P.; CABI, 2020, English language

Pest Management Decision Guides English

Chilli thrips.

Bharathidasan, K.; Rettinassababady, C.; Mathiyazhagan; CABI, 2018, English language

Pest Management Decision Guides English

Chilli Thrips on Hot Peppers-Barbados

Taylor, B.; CABI, 2014, English language

Pest Management Decision Guides English

Management of chilli thrips through establishment of sprinkler irrigation.

Rajeshkanna, S.; Yogeswaran, T.; Ahmed, D.; Vakeesan, A.; CABI, 2013, English language

Plantwise Factsheets for Farmers English

Show more factsheet