Chamaesaracha: New Weed Host Plant Genus for Bactericera cockerelli at the Potato-Growing Area of Northeastern Mexico.

There is insufficient knowledge of wild plant hosts of the tomato/potato psyllid, Bactericera cockerelli, one of the worst pests of solanaceous crops. We found B. cockerelli can complete its life cycle in the field on the widespread, unreported plant host, greenleaf five eyes, Chamaesaracha coronopus (Dunal) A. Gray (Solanaceae) at Galeana, NL, Mexico. After 48 hours in a laboratory, adult survival of B. cockerelli on C. coronopus and Chamaesaracha coniodes was 73.3 and 6.6%, respectively (p < 0.05). There was no oviposition on C. coniodes. Some Chamaesaracha species might contribute to population dynamics of B. cockerelli in North America. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]