Acanthocoris scabrator Fabr. a new pest of mango.
Koshy G., Visalakshy A., Nair M. R. G. K.
Author Affiliation: Division of Entomology, College of Agriculture, Vellayani, Kerala, India.
Current Science 47 : 129-130
Abstract : Acanthocoris scabrator (F.), which is known as a pest of cape gooseberry (Physalis peruviana), red pepper (Capsicum sp.), egg-plant and squash (Cucurbita maxima) in Canton, China, and on Solanaceae and Convolvulaceae in Malaysia, and which has been recorded in India (although not as a crop pest), was found for the first time on mango in India at Trivandrum in 1976. It punctured the young mango fruits and sucked the juice from inside, making holes that subsequently permitted the entry of rot-producing organisms that caused premature fall of the mangoes. Since A. scabrator breeds on Ipomoea carnea, feeding gregariously on the vines and passing through the nymphal stage in 70-75 days in October-November, detailed studies on its biology on this non-economic food-plant are in progress.