A Review of Leaf-mining Insects and Control Options for their Management, with Special Reference to Holocacista capensis (Lepidoptera: Heliozelidae) in Vineyards in South Africa

Abstract

A leaf-mining pest occurring on commercial varieties of Vitis vinifera in South Africa was investigated due to the presence of cocoons on fruit. The leaf miner, Holocacista capensis, was reported on grapevines in 2012. Since its discovery on commercial grape varieties, control strategies have consisted solely of insecticide applications. Despite the fact that the leaf-mining habit is taxonomically diverse and considered ancient, little is generally known of leaf-mining larvae. A review was conducted in order to better understand the leaf-mining strategy and amalgamate the current knowledge of other leaf-mining insects. The general evolutionary history within the full complement of taxa that display the leaf-mining habit is discussed. The review focuses on lepidopteran leaf-mining pests and discloses the known information associated with the first report and the impact of H. capensis in the Western Cape, South Africa. As no control methods have been identified for H. capensis in vineyards, various chemical, biological and cultural control strategies adopted for other leaf-mining pests were investigated. Control options, including the use of entomopathogenic nematodes (EPNs), parasitoids, physical and cultural control measures, were considered and are discussed. Alternate control methods are pertinent for the grape-growing industry to avoid the development of the insecticide resistance that is common amongst leaf miners. This review aims to consolidate the available literature and therefore aid in the development of an integrated pest management strategy to effectively control H. capensis in infested vineyards in South Africa.

Bedellia somnulentella (Lepidoptera: Bedelliidae): record of a new host and predator in Atlantic Forest biome in Minas Gerais state, Brazil

“…Trade and human mobility facilitate insect biological invasions, threatening the world agriculture (Desneux et al, 2022). Bedellia somnulentella Zeller, 1847 (Lepidoptera: Bedelliidae), a microlepidoptera leaf miner, reached pest status with cosmopolitan distribution (Steyn et al, 2020). This moth was rst collected in South America in Peru (NHM, 1914) and its second report was more than a century later in Diamantina, Minas Gerais state in southeastern Brazil (Santos et al, 2018).…”

First Discovery of the North American Leaf-Mining Moth Chrysaster ostensackenella (Lepidoptera: Gracillariidae) in Russia: The Genetic Diversity of a Novel Pest in Invaded vs. Native Range

“…Leaf-mining insects are among the most common pests affecting ornamental woody plants and crops worldwide [1][2][3][4]. Their larvae make cavities of different shapes and sizes inside leaf tissues, which are called leaf mines [5,6].…”

“…Each specimen is indicated by GenBank accession number, region, and country; 2 MTS-Mountain-Taiga Station, Mi-Minaminomori, Uri-Urimakunishi;3 One haplotype (H2) is shared.…”

A review on ecology, biology, and management of a detrimental pest, Tuta absoluta (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae)

“…The agricultural sector is profoundly tested by plant vermin and diseases. A high yielding harvests, having a place with solanaceous families delivers high monetary returns and greatly increases the pay of smallholder ranchers' income when its wellbeing is kept (Soares et al, 2019;Mkonyi et al, 2020;Steyn et al, 2020). Tomato plants are inclined to attack by a wide scope of arthropods against whom defense mechanisms such as chemical defenses of glandular trichomes and constitutive and wound-instigated safeguards are enacted.…”