Zanna Lanternfly vs Greenhouse Whitefly

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Zanna Lanternfly Greenhouse Whitefly
Scientific Name Zanna nobilis Trialeurodes vaporariorum
Order Hemiptera Hemiptera
Family Fulgoridae Aleyrodidae
Size 50-60 mm 1-1.5 mm
Habitat Forests Underground
Diet Sap Feeders Fungus Feeders
Regions West Africa, Central Africa Worldwide
Conservation Least Concern Not Evaluated

Zanna Lanternfly

An African lanternfly with a distinctive upturned snout-like head process and brown cryptic forewings. The hindwings are boldly patterned with red or orange and black.

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Did You Know?

African lanternflies of the genus Zanna are the ecological equivalents of the Neotropical Fulgora, showing convergent evolution in head morphology.

Greenhouse Whitefly

A white-winged sap-feeding insect commonly found in greenhouses and warm climates. Adults and nymphs produce honeydew that leads to sooty mold growth on plants.

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Did You Know?

The parasitoid wasp Encarsia formosa has been commercially reared since the 1920s specifically to control this whitefly.