Demographic pressure and food choice in Rastrococcus invadens, a pest of mango recently introduced to Africa (Homoptera, Pseudococcidae).
Boussienguet J., Mouloungou J.
Author Affiliation: Programme National de Lutte Biologique, Laboratoire Cheikk Anta Diop, Université du Gabon, BP 1886, Libreville, Gabon.
Bulletin de la Société Entomologique de France 98 : 139-148
Abstract : The relative susceptibilities of various varieties of mango to infestation by Rastrococcus invadens were investigated in Gabon in 1988-92. The varieties Alphonse, Améliorée du Cameroon and Schmith were the most infested, while Cambogeana, Julie, Lippen and Kent were the least infested. The occurrence of the pest on other plants was also investigated and compared in the absence (in 1988-89) and presence (1990-92) of a parasitoid, Gyranusoidea tebygi, which was introduced to control the pest. Before the introduction of the parasitoid, R. invadens was very polyphagous, with at least 38 species of food plant. After the introduction of the parasitoid, reduced population densities resulted in a reduction in the range of the food plants used by the pest. In this situation, mango, Citrus, Ficus and Plumeria spp. were preferred.