Insect Pests of Fruit, Plantation, Medicinal & Aromatic Crops (2+1)

9. Fruit sucking moth

9. Fruit sucking moth - Othreis fulloniea Cramer., O. materna Linn., and O. aneilla Cramer. (Noctuidae: Lepidoptera)

Damage

• The adult moth pierces the fruits for sucking the juice and make characteristic pin-hole damage in fruits.
• The feeding site is easily infected with fungi and bacteria causing rotting and dropping of fruits.
Bionomics

• The adult moth of E. conjuncta is faint orange brown having marginal dark bands mixed with white spots on hind wings. E. materna has three black spots on the fore wings. O. ancilla has white bands in the middle fore wing. E. fullonica has tripod black mark in the forewing and curved marking in hind wing.
• The moth is nocturnal in habit.
• It lays eggs on wild plants and weeds in and around the orchard.
• The egg period is about 2 weeks. The larvae is stout, typical semi looper, has a dorsal hump on the last segment of the body.
• The larva passes five instars and completes its larval stage in 4 weeks.
• It pupates for 2 weeks in the dried leaves or in the soil.
Management

• Remove and destroy the alternative weed host plants especially Tinospora cardifolia, Cocculus pendulus in the vicinity of the orchard.
• Bait with fermented molasses at 100 g + malathion 50 EC @ 10 ml / litre of water.
• Bag the fruit with polythene bags punctured at the bottom individually fruits in small-scale area.
• Create smoke on one side of the field and allow it individual fruits in small¬ scale area.
• Set up light traps or food lures to attract and kill the moths.
• Cover the entire field / orchard with nylon net and spray with contact insecticide.
• Collect and dispose off damaged fallen fruits to prevent further attraction of adults.
• Cover fruits with polythene bags (300 gauge) punctured at the bottom.
• Apply smoke to prevent moth attack.
• Use light traps or food lure (pieces of fruits) to attract moths.