The role of roof vents as a port of entry for whiteflies to greenhouses was evaluated. We determined the numbers of whiteflies entering through roof vents and their distribution in time and space. The entry data was correlated with the following factors: whiteflies levels in the surrounding environment, density of screen covering the vents, and airflow rates and directions through roof vents. The study was conducted during the fall season, for three years, at the Besor region in Israel. Results indicate that roof vents were the major port of entry of whiteflies into the greenhouses. The numbers of whiteflies captured were 2 to 3-fold higher under the eastern roof vents than under the western roof vents. This was in agreement with the fact that under our experimental conditions air was sucked into the greenhouse through the eastern vents and exhausted through the western vents. The numbers of whiteflies captured between the hours 8:00 to 12:00 was 5 to 10-fold higher than in other parts of the day. These results may be used to concentrate efforts for prevention, monitoring and control at the time and site were whiteflies are expected to be most abundant.
Species 1: Homoptera Aleyrodidae Bemisia tabaci (Sweetpotato Whitefly)
Keywords: roof vents
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