meal·y·bug

(mē′lē-bŭg′)

Any of various soft-bodied scale insects covered with a white powdery substance, especially of the family Pseudococcidae, some of which are destructive to ornamental and agricultural plants.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

meal•y•bug

(ˈmi liˌbʌg)

n.

any of several scalelike homopterous insects of the families Pseudococcidae and Eriococcidae that are covered with a powdery wax secretion and feed on plants.

[1815–25]

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Noun

mealybug - scalelike plant-eating insect coated with a powdery waxy secretion; destructive especially of fruit trees

mealy bug

coccid insect - scale insects and mealybugs

family Pseudococcidae, Pseudococcidae - scalelike insects: mealybugs

citrophilous mealybug, citrophilus mealybug, Pseudococcus fragilis - destructive especially to citrus

Comstock mealybug, Comstock's mealybug, Pseudococcus comstocki - Asiatic insect introduced accidentally into United States; pest on citrus and apple trees

citrus mealybug, Planococcus citri - feeds on a wide variety of cultivated plants but especially destructive to citrus

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References in periodicals archive

Caption: Figure 3: Totally damaged (Grade 4) sesame plants by heavy cotton mealybug infestation.

Incidence of a New Pest, the Cotton Mealybug Phenacoccus solenopsis Tinsley, on Sesame in North Ethiopia

Keywords: Biochemical traits; Cotton mealybug; Cluster and principal component analysis

Host-plant-preference and Mortality Analysis of Phenacoccus solenopsis in Association with Biochemical Traits of Different Plant Species

A severe invasion of the papaya mealybug (Paracoccus marginatus) nearly wiped out papaya orchards in Pakistan before the largely farmed country decided to replace conventional chemical pesticides that were ineffective with natural predators that proved to be successful.

Pakistan's papaya pest squashed through biocontrol

The Pseudococcidae family, better known as the floury mealybug, include the 'suckers' that feed on the sap and are the major cause of plants damaging.

Coccidoxenoides perminutus parasitizing Planococcus citri on vine in Brazil/Coccidoxenoides perminutus parasitando Planococcus citri em videira no Brasil

With the mealybug destroyer you'll invite beneficial insects into your garden, and you'll see your pesky bug population become a thing of the past.

Create your sacred garden

The Mealybug sucks the trees sap and subsequently the tree dies.

Mumbai ' bugged' with depleting green cover

As with other indoor plants, mealybug can be a problem.

Plants, a festive gift that keeps on giving; GARDENING With Diarmuid Gavin These indoor blooms will brighten loved ones' homes over the holidays

This third edition now adds to the above several invasive species, such as glassy-winged sharpshooter, vine mealybug, and Virginia creeper.

Grape Pest Management, 3rd Edition

You should also prepare for attack by mealybug - tiny things that you can spot by their white stickiness on leaves - as well as an invasion of ants and the lily beetle, a scarlet bug that eats pretty much every part of the lily.

A race against slime; Bug alert for summer

Rangaswamy "Muni" Muniappan of Virginia Tech identified the papaya mealybug, which ripped through crops, including papaya, eggplant, and tomato in southern India, causing mold and stunted growth, the Verge reports.

India saving $309mn annually with Virginia Tech-led natural pest control

The new, completely redesigned third edition of Grape Pest Management includes several invasive species that have become major grape pests, such as vine mealybug and glassy-winged sharpshooter, as well as other pests that may soon become problematic in California.

AVAILABLE from ANR: Grape Pest Management