Bugs on Papaya trees

[sometime]

Hi , I just noticed lots of bugs on my papaya trees, not too sure if they are good or bad for the trees.

At first I thought the orange ones were ladybirds, then decided no

any info would be appreciated

[Goompa]

Second image appears to be a mealy bug of some description , hence the pocking in the areas aside the wee creature , mostly they are white in colour covered in a wax like substance and not overly easy to control . They inject poison into the host plant .

Not sure on the first image though.

Check Mealy bugs on Google to see what damage they can do and the control of this nasty little guy , any controls will likely remove the unwanted other pests as well.

[willyumiii]

The waxy coating on mealybugs tend to repel any liquids.

If spraying for mealybugs, add a drop of dishwashing soap to the mix and it will make the spray soak in.

If you catch the early before there are hundreds of them, I get good results by dabbing them with some rubbing ( Ethyl ) alcohol on a cotton swab.

A little tedious, but effective control and low toxicity.

Choke Dee!

[tormok]

The orange ones could be ladybirds, as you first thought.

There's a very similar looking one listed on thaibugs.com under Ladybirds (Coccinellidae).

http://www.thaibugs.com/?page_id=286

Unfortunately unidentified.

[samuijimmy]

Hard to tell if they are lady bugs / birds, in the first image ... if they are they would be beneficial!

A better photo would help!

[drtreelove]

This appears to be a soft body scale, a sucking insect pest. Not good if in great numbers. They are usually phloem feeders; they suck plant sap from the tissues that carry photosynthesized sugars, and excrete honeydew, like aphids. The honeydew can be a nuisance, and black sooty mold sometimes grows on the sugary coated plant surfaces. It can be a big mess and in extreme cases scale can cause dieback and plant mortality.

The first photo shows the adults, the second a nymph or crawler. The adults fix themselves to the plant part, in this case it appears this scale likes the stems, but some scales infest leaves. Scale insects have incomplete metamorphosis, no larvae or pupae, the nymphs are the immature stage and do not feed until they mature and permanently implant their sucking mouth parts into the plant.

Like another poster pointed out for mealy bugs (related), they are hard to control with contact sprays as they protect themselves with the outer shell covering, like a turtle. For a food plant you should not use a systemic insecticide or the chemical may end up in the fruit. So you cannot control the adults unless you use mechanical control like wiping them off with a rag or cotton glove on your hand. For small plants, if you can reach the parts where the scale infestation is, this is very practical and fast, especially when they are on the stems. The nymphs are vulnerable to organic program compatible pesticide sprays like horticultural oil, insecticidal soap, pyrethrin (chrysanthemum extract) or neem seed oil extract, and/or aromatic botanicals like rosemary and peppermint solutions.

Scale insects usually have a very defined life cycle with the nymphs appearing in spring and the adults maturing and feeding through the summer. But some species and in some climates this can vary. Regular inspections can reveal what stage the insect is at and your control program can proceed accordingly. And then start inspecting early for the same pest the next year and get ahead of it with preventive measures.

Over fertilization with high nitrogen chemicals or manure can predispose the plants to insect pests like this due to excessive vegetative growth and sugar production. Its a fine line between adequate and excessive fertilization, but a gardener/farmer has to learn it for the plants they grow. Good soil and water management can help build resistance and reduce susceptibility.