EVALUATION OF PEANUT BREEDING LINES FOR RESISTANCE TO SILVERLEAF WHITEFLY (HOMOPTERA, ALEYRODIDAE)

Silverleaf whitefly, Bemisia argentifolii Bellows and Perring, n. sp., is a new and occasionally damaging pest of peanut, Arachis hypogaea L ., in Florida and other southern states. In 1992 and 1993, elite germp lasm from the peanut breeding program at the University of Florida and several commercial cultivars were evaluated for resistance to silverl eaf whitefly. In 1992, 52 genotypes that were chosen based on their pe rformance in previous trials were evaluated. Numbers of whitefly red-e yed nymphs on peanut genotypes differed significantly. However, only t wo genotypes supported fewer whiteflies (although not significantly) t han the cultivar 'Southern Runner'. In 1993, we evaluated selections o f crosses between Florida parent material (81206 and 567A) and a North Carolina parent (GP-NC343) with multi-insect resistance. All selectio ns tested had higher numbers of whitefly eggs and red-eyed nymphs than either 'Florunner' or 'Southern Runner'. No resistance to silverleaf whitefly was found in the peanut germplasm tested.