Research Note

ANTICARSIA GEMMATALIS HUBNER (LEPWOPTERA: NOCTUWAE): A NEW PEST ATTACKING PIGEON PEA IN PUERTO RICO1

The larvae of the velvet bean eaterpilJar, dered by whitish ones running the length of gemmatalis, has been found in the body (fig, 1). The head is yellow Puerto Rico defoliating plants of the orange.J-7 These caterpillars can feed up to 3 Papilionaceae group only: Arachis kypogea weeks and pupate 2 inches below the sur­ L. (), Glycine max (L.) (), face of the soil for 10 days.3 The adults are Medicago sativa L. (), Mucuna light brown to black to block nocturnal deeringiana (Bort) Merr (velvetbean), , with black lines running across the Pueraria pliaseoloides (Roxb.) Benth (trop­ wings. The eggs are tiny and round. Depo­ ical kudzu), P. hirsuta Shneid (kudzu vine), sited on the underside of leaves, they hatch Sesbania grandiflora (L.) Pers (galtito) and in 4 days.™ It is possible to have 3 genera­ Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp ().2 It tions per season/ has also been reported as a key defoliator in Aniicarsia gemmallis was first ob­ the southern states of the United States and served in Puerto Rico attacking pigeon pea in South America attacking basically the (Cajanus cajan Millsp.) in commercial fields same group of plants.:u In the tropics, 1 1 in Santa Isabel and in an experimental plot where those crops are cultivated, - it is con­ with cv PR-147 in Fortuna and Juana Diaz. sidered as a minor pest of pulses, including The larvae found during November and De­ pigeon pea. Recently, it was found that A. cember 1987 were defoliating the pigeon pea gemmatalis can be reared with success in plant and occasionally eating the flower pigeon pea." buds. The attack at Fortuna lasted from 4 The color of the larvae varies from dull to 6 days; 30 to 40% of the plants from the to olive-brown or black with dark lines bor­ check plots were affected. The larvae attack

1 Manuscript submitted to Editorial Board 30 June 1989. 2Martorell, Luis F., 1976. Annotated Food Plant Catalog of the of Puerto Rico. Agric. Exp. Stn. Univ. P. R. * Hills, Dennis, 1975. Agricultural Pests of the Tropics and Their Control. Cam­ bridge University Press, New York. 'Westcott, Cynthia, 1973. The Gardeners Bug Book. 4th ed, Doubleday & Company, Inc., New York. 5Morton, Julia F., Roger E. Smith, M. A. Lugo-Lopez and R. Abrams, 1982. Pigeonpeas (Cajanus cajan Millsp.): A valuable Crop of the Tropics. Spec. Publ. Dep. Agron., Univ. P. R., Mayagiiez, P. R. r> Lopez, J. D. Jr., S. L. Jones and V. S. House, 1982. of Trickogramma parasitising eggs of Helioihis spp. and some associated pests in central Texas. Southwest. EntomoL 7 (2): 87-93. 7Pedigo, Larry P., 1989. Entomology and Pest Management. Macmillan Publishing Company. New York. "Davidson, Ralph H. and Williams F. Lyon, 1979. Insect Pests of Farm, Garden and Orchard. 7th ed, John Wiley & Sons, New York. 94 ARMSTRONG ET AL./PIGEON PEA

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FIG 1.—Larvae of Anticarsia gemmatalis affecting pigeon pea. young leaves first, then move on to feed on Arts tides M. Armstrong older leaves. All tissues on the leaves are Assistant Entomologist eaten except the veins. Older iarvae often H&ni&n Ruiz attack stems of host plants. Where out­ Assistant Plant Pathologist breaks occur, entire fields can be defoliated Alberto Pantoja in 5 to 7 days.7 Assistant Entomologist