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VOL. 7, ISSUE 1 (2022)
Tomato borer Tuta absoluta Meyrick, 1917 (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae); Invasion and first record of its natural enemies in Cameroon
Authors
Heumou Cyril Rom eacute o, Tita Margaret Awah, Pando Joseph Blaise, Mbigah Pascal Monju, Dji eacute to Lordon Champlain
Abstract
Tuta absoluta is an invasive pest of tomato Lycopersicon esculentum. Originated from South America, T. absoluta has been reported in some West African countries such as Nigeria since 2014. Aimed at limiting the impact and expansion of this species; we followed up its distribution in the main agro-ecological zones of Cameroon 6 years after it was observed in the countrythrough field investigations. In Bambili, one of the infested sites, the incidence of the pest was evaluated, search for their potential natural enemies were done using incubation of infested organs. T. absoluta destroyed tomato in 10 different localities situated in 4 of the 5 agro-ecological zones of Cameroon. In Bambili, T. absoluta causes a mean damage of 79% and 94% respectively on fruits and leaves. There was a significant difference (t-test at p<0.05) in the infestation rate between seasons. Dry season appeared to be the most prolific period. The natural enemies of T. absoluta included the social wasps of the families Polistinae; Poliste sp., Synoeca sp., Belenogaster juncea and one Hemiptera Miridae Macrolophus pygmaeus which are predators of larvae meanwhile Necremnus sp., Hymenoptera Eulophidae was identified as it parasitoid.
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Pages:1-7
How to cite this article:
Heumou Cyril Rom eacute o, Tita Margaret Awah, Pando Joseph Blaise, Mbigah Pascal Monju, Dji eacute to Lordon Champlain "Tomato borer<em> Tuta absoluta</em> Meyrick, 1917 (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae); Invasion and first record of its natural enemies in Cameroon ". International Journal of Zoology Studies, Vol 7, Issue 1, 2022, Pages 1-7
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