Psyllids are small sap sucking insects with generally very narrow host plant ranges. Some of them are pests that cause major economic losses in agriculture, on ornamental plants and in forestry. They damage the plants by directly removing large quantities of sap or by the transmitting diseases. The chemical control of red gum lerp psyllids in eucalypt plantations in Brazil, for instance, costs millions of reais per year due to intensive use of insecticides. Another example is the transmission of bacteria such as Liberibacter asiaticus, the causal agent of HLB on citrus. Diaphorina citri, the vector, is considered today the most serious pest of citrus in Asia and America.

Many native plants which host of psyllids and are potential or likely repositories of bacteria which can infect the psyllids. In some cases, native psyllids can also adapt to cultivated plants.

The systematics of the psyllid species associated with plants of economic interest needs to be better known, and the possibility of transmission of phytopatogenic bacteria needs to be investigated. Therefore, the accurate identification of the species and the knowledge of their individual involvement in the transmission of such bacteria are not only fundamental for the strengthening of phytosanitary defense but also facilitate their interception, as they enable their early detection and inform decision-making on control measures. This project promotes the integration of efforts by specialists in the areas of Entomology, Chemistry, Biochemistry, Physiology, Soils, Nutrition, Management and Genetics/Molecular Biology so as to generate information on psyllids from different forest ecosystems in different Brazilian regions. The aim of the project is to prospect and generate information on Psylloidea in Brazil and define management tactics in planted forests.