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CAROB MOTH

 

Ectomyelois ceratoniae (Zeller) -- Lepidoptera, Pyralidae

&

NAVEL ORANGEWORM

 

Amyelois transitella (Walker) -- Lepidoptera, Phycitidae

 

 

(Contacts)

 

 

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       Although carob moth, Ectomyelois ceratoniae, has been a serious pest of almonds, dates and other crops in Mediterranean countries for many decades, the origin of this insect is probably in west-central Africa.  The Cameroon area is a most likely place.  In North America, carob moth has invaded and become a pest on tamarind in Florida and dates in California.

 

Carob moth

Navel Orangeworm

 

       The external morphology of this insect may be viewed at Adult Moth and Larva.  The carob moth  Pupa on the right is compared to that of the navel orangeworm (Amyelois transitella (Walker)).

 

      There has been a successful establishment of Goniozus legneri Gordh on carob moth, Ectomyelois ceratoniae (Zeller) attacking almonds in Israel, Egypt and Iran.  Dr. Shmuel Gothilf who obtained the parasitoids from Dr. E. F. Legner in California performed the research in Israel  A detailed scientific account was submitted for publication but was never published with the unexpected demise of Dr. Gothilf.  In his manuscript, Dr. Gothilf recorded the establishment and spread over all of Israel of G. legneri, and it was expected that population densities of the carob moth along with the peach twig borer would be gradually reduced, perhaps to non-economic levels. . It would be interesting to survey neighboring countries, Syria, Jordan, and Lebanon, for the existence of G. legneri.  However, Dr. Ahmed el-Heneidy of Egypt informed Dr. Legner that G. legneri was established on carob moth in his area.

 

       In South California, carob moth infests the seedpods of an array of ornamental trees and commercial dates south of 35 deg. N. Lat.  Goniozus legneri was released by the thousands in carob moth infested date groves in the Coachella Valley in 1986 and 1987.  These groves received no insecticide treatment during the release period.  However, as the infestations became very severe, many of the release sites began to sustain dusting treatments with Malathion, which precluded post release surveys. Attention was then focused on alternate carob moth host plants, such as almonds, pecans and pomegranates.  Establishment of G. legneri was thereby established for the area on these alternate host plants.  Gradually some of the groves were sold to commercial golf and housing developments.  By 2005, one organic grower with 20 acres of dates (Herrera grove) began to produce a high quality pest free crop of severa datel varieties without the use of insecticides.  Thus, a natural balance between the carob moth, navel orangeworm and G. legneri probably accounts for this reduction of infestation on dates.  Because the fruit of date palms is annually harvested from the commercial groves, the parasitoid has many alternate host plants on which to carry over into the next season.   Studies are continuing to further evaluate this interaction.

 

        Goniozus legneri --The discovery of Goniozus legneri <PHOTO> in South America involved making initial contact with Dr. José Pastrana of the University of Buenos Aires.  Arrangements were made for Dr. Legner to meet with Dr. Pastrana in Punta del Este, Uruguay in 1977.  The navel orangeworm was not a common insect at higher latitudes in South America, and Dr. Pastrana only recalled having studied it in his collections from central Argentina.  He advised Dr. Legner to travel to Concordia, Argentina to inquire there (also see efl210, efl258).

 

       In Concordia, Dr. Aquiles Silveira-Guido accompanied Dr. Legner, where both of them searched through collections in the experiment station there.  A dusty room, filled to the ceiling with wooden insect collection boxes, was searched intensively.   Several specimens of the navel orangeworm were found from collections made in 1938, and from the host coral tree, Erythrinia crista-galli.  This knowledge enabled a further search in the wild on this host tree.

 

       Subsequently, collections were continued in Argentina and Uruguay with the aid of Dr. Silveira-Guido.  Goniozus legneri turned out to be the most frequently collected parasitoid from navel orangeworm and the imported carob moth, Ectomyelois ceratoniae, with other parasitoid species of only ca. 5% occurrence being  Temelucha sp, Coccygonimus sp. and Venturia canescens (Graven-Stein), Bracon sp. & Copidosoma sp.  Cultures sent to Riverside, California were attempted, but only G. legneri succeeded. 

 

       Collections were also made from Texas where it was found that Pentalitomastix (Copidosoma) plethorica parasitized navel orangeworm on Nonpareil almonds as far north as Brownwood (33 deg. N. lat.) and on Texas ebony and western soapberry seeds along the Gulf of Mexico coast and throughout south Texas.  At the latitude of Corpus Christi, another parasitoid, a biparental strain of Goniozus emigratus was found attacking this host at low densities in all seasons on western soapberry and Texas ebony.  Although identified as G. emigratus by Gordh & Hawkins (1981), its biparental behavior and fecundity differed significantly from the uniparental Hawaiian form to indicate its possible sibling status.

 

RESULTS & CONCLUSIONS

 

       Establishment of Goniozus legneri occurred quickly following liberations in California, Egypt and Israel in almond orchards.  The parasitoid then spread to neighboring countries, such as Iran.  Carob moth populations also descended to low levels.  In California an infestation of carob moth in date groves was not controlled by G. legneri, however,  as relative humidity levels there were believed to be too low for parasitoid survival.

 

 

REFERENCES:

 

Abbas, M.S.T., Shidi, R.H., Jumah, S. and Al-Khatry, S.A.  2008.  Utilization of Goniozus sp. (Hym.: Bethylidae) as a bio-control agent against the lesser date moth, Batreachedra amydaraula (Meyrick) (lep.: Batrachedridae) in date palm orchards in Sultanate of Oman. Egyptian Journal of Biological Pest Control 18:47-50.

 

Abbas, M.S.T., Al-Khatry, S.A., Shidi, R.H.; Al-Ajmi, and Najat, A.  2014.  Natural enemies of the lesser date moth, Batrachedra amydraula Meyrick (Lepidoptera: Batrachedridae) with special reference to its parasitoid Goniozus sp. Egyptian Journal of Biological Pest Control 24: 293-296.

 

Bellows, T. S. & T. W. Fisher (eds.).  1999. Handbook of Biological Control:  Principles and Applications.  Academic Press, San Diego, New York. 1046 p.

 

 Butler, G.D, Jr., and Schmidt, K.M.  1985.  Goniozus legneri (Hymenoptera: Bethylidae): development, oviposition, and longevity in relation to temperature. _ Annals of the Entomological Society of America_ 78: 373–375.

 

Caltagirone, L. E.  1966.  A new Pentalitomastix from Mexico.  The Pan Pacific Entomol. 42:  145-151.

 

Caltagirone, L. E., K. P. Shea and G. L. Finney.  1964.  Parasites to aid control of navel orangeworm.  Calif. Agric. 19(1):  10-12.

 

Conference (Iran):.  2010.  First record of Goniozus legneri Gordh (Hymenoptera: Bethylidae), the larval ectoparasitoid of carob moth, in Iran.  Iranian Plant Protection Congress, July 2010, Tehran:  Vol. 19. July 2010.

 

 Ehteshami, F..,  M  Aleosfoor,  H. Allahyari, M. Alichi, M. A. Akrami  & M. Kiani.  2010a.  First record of Goniozus legneri Gordh (Hymenoptera: Bethylidae), the larval ectoparasitoid of carob moth, in Iran.  Proceedings of 19th Iranian Plant Protection Congress,

 

 Ehteshami, F..,  M  Aleosfoor,  H. Allahyari, M. Alichi, M. A. Akrami  & M. Kiani.   2010b.  Primary investigation on the biology of Goniozus legneri Gordh (Hymenoptera:Bethylidae), a larval ectoparasitoid of carob moth, on Ectomyelois ceratoniae (Zeller).

 

Proceedings of 19th Iranian Plant Protection Congress, 31 July-3 August 2010, Iranian; Research Institute of Plant Protection,

 Tehran, 605 pp

 

 El-Basha, N.A. and Mandour, N.S.  2006.  Effect of Goniozus legneri Gordh (Hymenoptera: Bethylidae) on the life table of Palpita unionalis Hb. (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae). Egyptian Journal of Biological Pest Control 16: 5-11.

 

Etiam, A. 2001.  Oviposition behavior and development of immature stages of Parasierola swirskiana, a parasitoid of the lesser moth Batrachedra amydraula.  Phytoparasitica 29: 405-412.

 

Garrido, S., Cichon, L., Fernández, D. and Azevedo, C.  2005.  Primera cita de la especie Goniozus legneri (Hymenoptera: Bethylidae) en el Alto Valle de Río Negro, Patagonia Argentina. Revue de Societe Entomologique Argentina 64: 14-16.

 

Gordh, G.  1982.  A new species of Goniozus imported into California for the biological control of navel orangeworm [Hymenoptera: Bethylidae; Lepidoptera: Pyralidae].  Entomol. News 93:  136-138.

 

Gordh, G. and Evans, H. E.  1976.  A new species of  Goniozus imported into California from Ethiopia for the biological control of pink bollworm and some notes on the taxonomic status of Parasierola and Goniozus (Hymenoptera: Bethylidae). Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington 78: 479-489.

 

Gordh, G. & B. Hawkins.  1981.  Goniozus emigratus (Rohwer), a primary external parasite of Paramyelois transitella (Walker), and comments      on bethylids attacking Lepidoptera [Hymenoptera: Bethylidae; Lepidoptera: Pyralidae].  J. Kansas Entomol. Soc. 54:  787-803.

 

Gothilf, S.  1978.  Establishment of the imported parasite Pentalitomastix plethoricus [Hym: Encyrtidae] on Ectomyelois ceratoniae [Lep: Phycitidae]  in Israel.  Entomophaga 23:  299-302.

 

 Gothilf, S. and Mazor, M.  1987.  Release and recovery of imported parasites of the carob moth Spectrobates ceratoniae (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) in Israel. Israel Journal of Entomology 21: 19-23.

 

211.  Legner, E. F.  1983a.  Influence of residual Nonpareil almond mummies on densities of the navel orangeworm and parasitization.  J. Econ. Entomol.  76:  473-475.

 

209.   Legner, E. F.  1983b.  Patterns of field diapause in the navel orangeworm (Lepidoptera: Phycitidae) and three imported parasites.  Ann. Entomol. Soc. Amer. 76:  503-506.

 

258.  Legner, E. F. & G. Gordh.  1992.  Lower navel orangeworm (Lepidoptera: Phycitidae) population densities following establishment of Goniozus  legneri (Hymenoptera: Bethylidae) in  California.  J. Econ. Ent. 85(6):  2153-60.

 

210.  Legner, E. F. & A. Silveira-Guido.  1983.  Establishment of Goniozus emigratus and Goniozus legneri [Hym: Bethylidae] on navel orangeworm,  Amyelois transitella [Lep: Phycitidae] in California and biological control potential.  Entomophaga 28:  97-106.

 

 240.  Legner, E. F. and Warkentin, E.F. 1988. Parasitization of Goniozus legneri (Hymenoptera: Bethylidae) at increasing parasite and  host, Amyelois transitella (Lepidoptera: Phycitidae), densities. Annals of the Entomological Society of America 81: 774–776.

 

205.  Legner, E. F., G. Gordh, A. Silveira-Guido & M. E. Badgley.  1982.  New larvicidal wasp to attempt control of navel orangeworm.  Almond  Facts  47(3):  56-58.

 

203.  Legner, E. F., G. Gordh, A. Silveira-Guido & M. E. Badgley.  1982.  New wasp may help control navel orangeworm.  Calif. Agric. 38(5-6): 1, 3-5.

 

Shoeb, M. A., Abul-Fadl, H .A. and El-Heneidy, A. H.  2005.  Biological aspects of the ecto-larval parasitoid, Goniozus legneri Gordh on different insect hosts under laboratory conditions. Egyptian Journal of Biological Pest Control 15: 5-9