Tomato Potato Psyllid

Tomato potato psyllid (TPP; Bactericera cockerelli) is an exotic plant pest that was detected in Australia for the first time in 2017. The psyllid was detected in several Perth backyard vegetable crops and a commercial property north of Perth. In November 2024, TTP was detected in a glasshouse at a tomato production facility in southwest Victoria. This was the first detection in Australia outside Western Australia.

TPP is a tiny sap-sucking insect that attacks a range of plants in the Solanaceae family, which includes tomato, potato, capsicum, chilli, tamarillo and sweet potato, and solanaceous weeds like nightshade.

Adults resemble small winged cicadas and are about 3mm long. The body is brownish and has white or yellowish markings on the thorax and a broad white band on the abdomen. Their wings are transparent and held vertically over their body.

Help identify and report tomato potato psyllid

You can help stop the spread of tomato potato psyllid by looking for:

• insect life stages on the underside of leaves and signs of leaf damage in host plants
• adult TPP jumping from foliage when disturbed
• stunting and yellowing of growth tips in host plants
• yellowing or purpling of leaf margins
• ‘cupping’ or upward curling of leaves
• severe wilting of plants caused by high numbers of TPP feeding
• ‘psyllid sugars’ — white sugar-like granules excreted by adults and nymphs, which coat leaves and stems, and can lead to growth of sooty mould
• stem death symptoms similar to other potato and tomato disorders.

Reporting tomato potato psyllid in the ACT