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Morphology of the sweet potato whitefly,Bemisia tabaci (Homoptera, Aleyrodidae) relative to virus transmission

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Abstract

The stylet bundle of the sweet potato whitefly,Bemesia tabaci, consists of paired mandibles and maxillae. The latter interlock to form the food and salivary canals. Its salivary system consists of paired primary and accessary glands in the thorax. Primary and accessory gland ducts on each side of the nerve cord fuse to form lateral ducts that course anteroventrally to the midline and continue in parallel down the hypopharynx to eventually fuse to form the single afferent duct of the salivary pump. Saliva exiting the pump via the efferent duct enters the salivary canal of the maxillae. Food from the maxillary food canal passes from the antecibarium to the postcibarium or sucking pump and, per os, to the pharynx and esophagus of the foregut. The esophagus extends from the head to the base of the abdomen where it and the anterior midgut intimately mingle with the anterior hindgut to form a filter chamber. The midgut then proceeds dorsocaudally before looping anteroventrally to join the hindgut. The latter gives off two fingerlike Malpighian tubules before entering the filter chamber, whence it proceeds dorsocaudally to the anus within the vasiform orifice. Where possible, the morphology ofBemisia is discussed in relation to plant virus transmission and the morphologies of more thoroughly studied homopteran vectors such as aphids and leafhoppers.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Virus-Vector Research Laboratory, Department of Entomology, Texas A&M University, 77843-2475, College Station, TX, USA

    Kerry F. Harris & Z. Pesic-Van Esbroeck

  2. Sugar Beet Production Research Laboratory, USDA-ARS, 1616 E. Alisal Street, 93905, Salinas, California, USA

    James E. Duffus

Authors
  1. Kerry F. Harris
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  2. Z. Pesic-Van Esbroeck
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  3. James E. Duffus
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Harris, K.F., Pesic-Van Esbroeck, Z. & Duffus, J.E. Morphology of the sweet potato whitefly,Bemisia tabaci (Homoptera, Aleyrodidae) relative to virus transmission. Zoomorphology 116, 143–156 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02526946

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