Australia: Biosecurity advice for tomato potato psyllid
This psyllid is an insect that attacks a range of plants in the Solanaceae family which includes potato, tomato, eggplant, capsicum, chilli and tamarillo.
The pest has been found in a capsicum crop in a commercial property north of Perth, in backyard tomatoes and eggplants in Belmont and backyard tomatoes at two properties in Mount Hawthorn.
DNA barcoding is underway to confirm the identity of the pest. These results are expected this week.
If confirmed, this would be the first time the psyllid has been detected in Australia. The tomato potato psyllid is a significant production pest in other countries where it is present, which are the USA, Central America, New Zealand and Norfolk Island, which is an external Australian Territory.
The tomato potato psyllid is also capable of transmitting a disease known as zebra chip which poses a threat to important horticultural crops. Testing is underway to determine whether the bacterium that causes zebra chip is present. The bacterium has not been found in any samples taken to date.
The Department of Agriculture and Food, Western Australia has quarantined the affected properties and put biosecurity restrictions in place on the movement of people, vegetable and plant material off these properties.
Officers are also carrying out surveys on properties within the wider metropolitan area to determine how widespread the psyllid is.
The national Consultative Committee on Emergency Plant Pests (CCEPP) has met to discuss this suspect detection and determine the next steps, which have included urgent DNA testing and further surveillance. It will meet again when the DNA test
results are known.
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