Morphometric Characterization of the Mango Tree’s Mealy Cochineal: Rastrococcus Invadens on Citrus Tree in Senegal

Abstract

Morphometric data is a useful complement of information that allows precise identification of the different parts of Rastrococcus invadens in Senegal. This study was carried out in four farms (Diatock and Oussouye) all located in natural Casamance and (Santhie and Khay) in the region of Thies. The work took place in February 2016 where citrus production is important. In each farm, we chose the lemon tree and the orange tree which are host plants of R. invadens.From each plant we collected 10 specimens. This enabled us to get 40 specimens from Casamance and 40 other specimens from Thies. Specimens were coded with regard to both the area and the type of plant they were collected from. The average measurements of the different parts of the insect showed a difference between the populations of the two agro-ecological zones with homogeneity of the populations of Thies and a heterogeneity of the populations of Casamance with a large zone of introgression. The results of this study should allow easier recognition of the different parts of R. invadens.

Morphometric characterization of Rastrococcus invadens on four varieties of mango trees (Pout, Thies)

“…The organoleptic taste seems to correspond to a discriminatory criterion, therefore it is involved in the variation of the morphology of the species as well as the climatic conditions [14]. This could lead us to consider the mango tree as being the plant most affected.…”