Residential and commercial guava growers in California are asked to be on the lookout for Cardin’s Whitefly (Metaleurodicus cardini, (Back) Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae). This pest is not known to be established in the environment in California; however, it is intercepted on incoming plant shipments at a frequency to cause concern. It can complete its lifecycle on a wide range of host plants, including guava, citrus, pomegranate, cherimoya and various ornamentals including plumeria/frangipani. It is known to be established in Hawaii and Florida, and in Nigeria and throughout the Caribbean (Bermuda, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Haiti, Jamaica, Puerto Rico).
Read more about the pest in the Topics in Subtropics Newsletter:
https://ucanr.edu/county/santa-barbara-county/collection/topics-subtropics
Image of guava fruit by Greg Alder, Whitefly by Lyle Buss UF/IFAS