Tobacco thrips destroy pepper harvest in greenhouses: a polyphagous pest is spreading massively worldwide

Global pepper producers are sounding the alarm over the widespread proliferation of the dangerous pest Thrips parvispinus, also known as the tobacco thrips, which is causing significant damage to greenhouse farms, particularly in Spain and India. This is reported by HortiDaily. According to regional breeder for Syngenta Vegetable Seeds, José Antonio Chicona, the situation in Almeria, Spain, is critical. "Almost every greenhouse has been affected. Losses can reach 30% of the crop." According to another company specialist, Alejandro Pascual, some farmers (2–4%) have completely destroyed their crops because they could not cope with the pest. "The area under pepper in the region has decreased from 13,000 hectares to 300 hectares, and the trend is continuing. A similar situation is observed in India, where black thrips have almost completely displaced the local species Scirtothrips dorsalis over a few years." Thrips parvispinus, widely known as the black tobacco thrips, is a pest that ...