Diverse niche opportunities for glassy-winged sharpshooter, Homalodisca vitripennis (Germar) (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae), in California and the role of research for crop protection

Glassy-winged sharpshooter (GWSS) is a xylem feeder that vectors Xylella fastidiosa Wells et al., a bacterium that causes Pierce’s Disease (PD) in grapevines and other diseases in a number of economically important plant species. GWSS originally from southeastern North America invaded California sometime in the 1980’s. After a rapid population growth and range expansion in the 1990s, GWSS caused severe problems in California by spreading the bacteria in vineyards. Although the long term goal for PD control includes the use of grape varieties resistant to the pathogen, the current control measures rely on an area-wide insecticide application program and release of biological control agents to suppress the vector population in its numerous habitats in California. The role of research in both short and long term crop protection will be discussed.