Geographical Distribution Studies on common pistachio psylla, Agonoscena pistaciae Burckhardt and Lauterer (Hem.: Aphalaridae) in Iran

Abstract The common pistachio psyllid, Agonoscesna pistaciae is a key pest of pistachio trees in Iran. Both adults and nymphs cause great economic damages by sucking sap and produce large amounts of honeydew. The geographical distribution of this pest was studied using maxEnt in different climates of Iran. In the present study, Field experiments were conducted during 2019–2020 on pistachio trees and records of 732 specimens collected from 24 climates of Iran in addition to altitude and climate variable data were used for modeling analysis. The results show that northwest of Iran with climatic characteristics of mild winters; warm summers and arid regime were the most suitable areas for A . pistaciae , while the central, west and southeast regions of Iran with very high temperatures were predicted to be less suitable. The habitat distribution patterns for some species such as A . pistaciae can be modeled using a small number of occurrence records and environmental variables using MaxEnt and could be used in plant protection and implementation of integrated control programs.