In Kagoshima Prefecture, we investigated the damage caused by zonate leaf blight on Camellia sasanqua trees planted in various locations, including parks and roadsides (14 locations) and wild trees in the mountains (7 locations). The occurrence rate and degree of damage varied greatly among survey sites and were remarkably higher for planted trees than for wild trees; however, clear relationships between altitude and occurrence rate or degree of damage were not observed. The occurrence rate and degree of damage were generally similar between 2017 and 2018 for every location. Among planted trees, clusters of regularly pruned planted trees exhibited higher occurrence rates and degrees of damage (indicating greater damage) than those that were left unpruned. Among pruned planted trees, damage was more pronounced in plants receiving ample sunlight than in those receiving less sunlight. Across all surveyed clusters, the greater the relative light intensity, the greater the damage. Conversely, damage was more pronounced when the crowns of adjacent plants were in contact.

Following an earlier report of an infestation in Amami Island, Japan, the exotic scale insect Aulacaspis yasumatsui was confirmed to attack Cycas revoluta in Okinawa Island, Japan. Plants damaged by A. yasumatsui were localized in two adjacent villages in the northern part of Okinawa Island, far from the island's main port facilities. The damaged area was localized compared with the earlier infestation in Amami Island. Interviews with a resident and a facility manager revealed that damage had become visible in 2020 and 2021. Two months after the application of an insecticide spray, there was no sign of new leaves being attacked and no abnormalities were visible in all previously attacked plants. Chemical control and the removal of damaged leaves are labor-intensive procedures; therefore, control methods that are easier to undertake need to be established.