Mango hopper
The hopper that swarms mango panicles at flowering — drying the flowers, blackening the tree with sooty mould, and cutting fruit set.
- Pest type
- Sap-sucking hopper
- Attacks
- Flower panicles, tender shoots
- Worst in
- Flowering; dense shady orchards
- Main risk
- Flower drop; sooty mould
Overview
Mango hoppers are wedge-shaped sap-sucking insects that are the single most important pest of mango flowering. Both the adults and the nymphs congregate in large numbers on the flower panicles and tender shoots, piercing them and sucking the sap. This dries the flowers so they wither and drop, striking fruit set at the exact stage it is decided.
On top of the direct loss, the hoppers excrete copious sticky honeydew, on which a black sooty mould grows, coating the panicles, leaves and developing fruit and further cutting photosynthesis and fruit quality. Hoppers are worst in dense, unpruned, shady orchards with a humid canopy, and their activity peaks with flowering, so control is timed to the panicle stage.
How to identify it
- Wedge-shaped hoppers crowding the flower panicles and tender shoots, flying/hopping off with a buzz when the branch is shaken.
- Flowers that dry, wither and drop from heavily-infested panicles, cutting fruit set.
- Sticky honeydew and black sooty mould coating the panicles, leaves and young fruit.
- A characteristic sound and shower of hoppers when you tap a flowering branch in a badly-affected tree.
The damage it does
- Dried, dropped flowers and poor fruit set — the main loss, striking at the most critical stage.
- Black sooty mould over panicles, leaves and fruit that reduces photosynthesis and downgrades the fruit.
- Weakened tender shoots and reduced tree vigour in a heavy, repeated attack.
- Worst in dense, unpruned, shady orchards where the humid canopy favours the hopper.
When to act
- Protect the tree from panicle emergence through flowering to early fruit set — this is when the hopper does its damage.
- Monitor the panicles for hopper build-up as flowering begins; act before the flowers start drying.
- Open, well-pruned trees are easier to protect and less favourable to the hopper, so orchard management sets the baseline.
Organic & cultural control
- Prune to open up the canopy and let in light and air — a dense, shady orchard is what favours the hopper; an open one suffers far less.
- Spray neem oil / NSKE on the panicles at flowering to check the hoppers, and encourage natural enemies.
- Manage the sooty mould by controlling the hopper (its honeydew feeds the mould); a starch/wash spray can help clean coated leaves.
- Keep the orchard floor clean and avoid excess flushing growth that gives the hopper more tender tissue.
Chemical control
- Time sprays to the panicle/flowering stage — a first spray at panicle emergence and a second at flowering is a common schedule, using CIB&RC-registered insecticides for mango hopper.
- Avoid spraying at full bloom in a way that harms pollinators; follow the recommended timing and rotate insecticide groups.
- Direct the spray to cover the panicles thoroughly, and observe the pre-harvest interval on the fruit.
- Confirm the current recommendation and schedule for your area with your local KVK or horticulture department.
Crops most at risk
Where this problem is called out in our crop guides — open a crop for the full package of practices.
Frequently asked questions
My mango flowers are drying and dropping and the tree is going black. What is it?
That is the mango hopper. The wedge-shaped hoppers swarm the flower panicles, suck the sap so the flowers dry and drop, and shower honeydew on which a black sooty mould grows — blackening the tree. It strikes right at fruit set. Protect the panicles from emergence through flowering, and prune to open up the canopy.
Why is the sooty mould there, and how do I get rid of it?
The black sooty mould grows on the sticky honeydew the hoppers excrete — it does not infect the tree but blocks light and fouls the fruit. The way to remove it is to control the hopper so the honeydew stops; the mould then weathers off, and a wash spray can help clean coated leaves. Chasing the mould without controlling the hopper does not work.
When should I spray for mango hopper?
Time it to the panicle and flowering stage, when the hopper does its damage — a common schedule is a spray at panicle emergence and another at flowering, with registered insecticides, avoiding harm to pollinators at full bloom. Combine this with pruning for an open canopy and neem sprays. Confirm the schedule with your local KVK.
Symptoms and control measures follow ICAR, KVK and state agricultural-university package-of-practices; any named chemical is a registered use. Always read the product label and confirm the dose for your crop and zone. editorial policy.