Taxonomic information	Current valid scientific name: Plicosepalus acaciaeSynonyms: Loranthus acaciaeName used in the EU legislation: –Order: SantalalesFamily: LoranthaceaeCommon name: acacia strap flowerName used in the Dossier: –
Group	Plants
EPPO code	LOAAC
Regulated status	Plicosepalus acaciae is not regulated anywhere in the world neither listed by EPPO.
Pest status in Israel	Present in Israel, in the Jordan Valley and in the area between the north of Eilat and the Dead Sea (Veste et al., 2015).
Pest status in the EU	Plicosepalus acaciae is absent in the EU.
Host status on Ficus carica	Ficus carica is a host of P. acaciae (Qasem, 2009).
PRA information	No Pest Risk Assessment is currently available.
Other relevant information for the assessmentAccording to Dossier Section 9.0, bare rooted plants are 20–100 cm tall, with base diameter of up to 2 cm. Liners are about 10 cm high and with ~ 1 cm base diameter.
Biology	Plicosepalus acaciae is a perennial leafy hemiparasitic mistletoe with 6–7 years of lifespan (Qasem, 2009).Spectacled bulbul birds (Pycnonotus xanthopygos) are dispersing viable seeds of mistletoe, when consuming their fruits. Movement patterns of bulbuls were observed with a maximum distance of 267 m. Movements on a larger scale probably occur but were not observed and are presumed to be rare (Green et al., 2009).The fruits are red berries with sticky seeds (Veste et al., 2014). The fruiting occurs from June to April, with a peak in October and November (Green et al., 2009).At seed germination, the modified hypocotyl forms a pad that adheres to the host branch to form a haustorium (Qasem, 2009). Plicosepalus acaciae is connected with its host through the haustorium, which allows the transportation of water, inorganic and organic compounds from the host's transpiration stream directly into the parasite (Veste et al., 2014). This mistletoe has chlorophyll and so photosynthesise independently but takes water and nutrients from its host (Qasem, 2009)The parasitic plants must have lower water potentials than their hosts to ensure the flow of water and nutrients through the haustorial connection (Qasem, 2009).The rapid invasion of P. acaciae in Israel is caused by the increase in the population of bulbul birds (Ward et al., 2006).
Symptoms	Main type of symptoms	The characteristic sign of mistletoe infection is the presence of the evergreen plant growing on branches or trunks of trees (Mathiasen et al., 2008).The effects of mistletoes on their hosts include dieback of branches, hypertrophy, reductions in growth, vigour, fruiting, and seed production. Severe infection by mistletoes is often associated with premature mortality of host trees (Mathiasen et al., 2008).Christ thorn jujube (Ziziphus spina‐christi) suffered high mortality and had significantly lower fruit production when infected by P. acaciae. Moreover, mistletoes on trees that were heavily infested produced more fruits (Ward et al., 2006).Acacia raddiana populations parasitised by the mistletoe P. acaciae are suffering high levels of mortality in the Negev Desert. However, the tree mortality seems not to be directly related to the mistletoe but caused by other mechanical damages of road building in close distance of the plants (Bowie and Ward, 2004).
	Presence of asymptomatic plants	At early infestation, the shoots of mistletoes may be easily overlooked.
	Confusion with other pathogens/pests	Plicosepalus acaciae is similar to other Plicosepalus species, such as P. curviflorus, P. kalachariensis, P. meridianus, P. nummulariifolius, P. sagittifolius and P. undulates (Royal Botanic Gardens et al., online).
Host plant range	Hosts of P. acaciae include acacia (Acacia spp.), Australian pine (Casuarina equisetifolia), bushwillow (Combretum spp.), Dobera spp., fig (Ficus carica), chinaberry (Melia azedarach), oleander (Nerium oleander), terebinth (Pistacia atlantica), poinciana (Poinciana gilliesii), pomegranate (Punica granatum), white weeping broom (Retama raetam), sumac (Rhus tripartita), Ozoroa spp., tamarisk (Tamarix pentandra), Terminalia spp., common jujube (Ziziphus jujube), African jujube (Ziziphus lotus), Christ thorn jujube (Ziziphus spina‐christi) and other species (Qasem, 2009).The mistletoe is rapidly expanding its host range (Qasem, 2009).
Pathways	The main pathways of entry for dwarf mistletoes are plants for planting and cut branches (EFSA PLH Panel, 2018). The Panel considers that the same pathways could apply to P. acaciae.
Surveillance information	No surveillance information for this pest is currently available from PPIS. There is no information on whether the pest has ever been found in the nursery or their surrounding environment.