Asian citrus psyllid

noun

: a sap-sucking, grayish-brown mottled plant louse (Diaphorina citri of the family Psyllidae) of southern Asia that has been widely introduced into the U.S. and other citrus-growing regions and is a serious pest of citrus trees especially as a vector of the bacteria causing citrus greening

The Asian citrus psyllid, which is the size of a fruit fly, feeds on the leaves of lemon and orange trees.

—P. J. Huffstutter

Word History

First Known Use

1984, in the meaning defined above