First record of tomato leaf miner Tuta absoluta (Meyrick) (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae) in Tanzania

Abstract

Background: Pest invasion has been a disruptive phenomenon in nature, the consequence being ecological and economical negative effect in natural ecosystem of the area. In agriculture, introduced insect pest has a devastating effect on food production. Such a phenomenon occurred in Ngabobo village, Ngarenanyuki, King' ori, in the Arumeru District of Tanzania, a key tomato production area, when boring Lepidoptera larvae were found on aerial parts of tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) plants between 2014 and 2015. Larvae created blotched leaf galleries and superficial mines on fruits.

Control and Management of Tomato Leafminer -Tuta Absoluta (Meyrick) (Lepidotera, Gelechiidae).A Review

“…Tomato produced by small and medium scale farmers for home consumption and as a source of income [1,2]. Recently, the production of tomato has been decreasing due to various factors including pest and disease [3,4]. Tomato production faces many problems from several causes such as seasonal weather, temperature, humidity, diseases and insect pests.…”

“…Due to lack of natural barriers, porous borders and lack of quarantine regulation implementation, the wild species can move from one ecological community to the other through human activities. This invasive pest -Tuta absoluta commonly known as the Tomato leaf miner is considered a serious threat to tomato production worldwide [4]. Tuta absoluta can destroy an entire tomato farm, whether in the open field or in a greenhouse, if effective control measures are not employed.…”

“…Tuta absoluta can destroy an entire tomato farm, whether in the open field or in a greenhouse, if effective control measures are not employed. Thousands of tomato farmers in Tanzania are suffering from serious production losses due to devastating pest that destroyed their precious crop [3,4,6]. The leafminers, T. absoluta, originate from South America [7],is a significant pest of tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.), as well as other solanaceous crops like eggplants, peppers, potatoes, beans and datura [1,2].…”

“…It attacks all aerial parts of the host (leaves, stems and fruits) and feeds within the tissues [1]. The pest was reported for the first time in Tanzania in August 2014 and since then invaded different parts of the country [4]. The pest started infesting tomato farms in the northern part of the country to regions like Arusha, Manyara and Kilimanjaro.…”

First report of tomato leaf miner, Tuta absoluta (Meyrick) (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae), in Botswana

“…Thereafter, it invaded the Mediterranean Basin, Europe, Middle East, South Asia (India), and north, east and west Africa [13,16,18]. In north Africa, T. absoluta was detected north of the Sahel, Tunisia and Morocco in 2008 [16,19,20], west Africa; in Niger and Nigeria in 2010, and in Senegal in 2012 [21] east Africa; in Sudan and Ethiopia in 2011 [21,22], in Kenya in 2013 [11], in Tanzania in 2014 [23] and in Uganda in 2015 [11], southern Africa; in Zambia [24] and in South Africa in 2016 [25,26] (see distribution map, Fig. 1).…”