Aleurodicus dispersus, the spiralling whitefly, is a species of small, white sap-sucking insect, a true bug in the order Hemiptera.

Each of the forewings bear a characteristic pair of black spots and the eyes in this species are a dark reddish brown.

[3] It was found and intercepted in the 1950s on imports into the United States by quarantine officials but later became established in Florida and in 1962 it had reached the Canary Islands.

[2] Cultivated crops and ornamentals affected by it include banana, coconut, citrus, avocado, breadfruit, mango, macadamia, guava, paw-paw, capsicum, lead tree, frangipani and rose.

Sooty mould often grows on the honeydew and may reduce the leaf area available for photosynthesis, disfigure the plant and even make it unmarketable.

[6] Despite the application of quarantine measures it has spread rapidly in the tropics and caused the loss of many millions of dollars through lower crop yields.

When a new area is invaded, at first the whitefly flourish unchecked, but in the course of time, the predators begin to exert some control and populations become more stable and start to reduce.