First report of Acanthocoris scabrator (Coreidae) as a pest of vegetables in India

Abstract

In this study, a coreid bug Acanthocoris scabrator (Heteropera: Coreidae) is reported as a pest of Capsicum annuum, C. frutescens, Ipomoea aquatica, I. batatas and Solanum melongena from Kerala, India. No acute symptoms such as drying up or wilting was observed either on Solanum melongena or Capsicum spp.; however, on I. aquatica and I. batatas, water-soaked lesions were observed around the feeding punctures on the tender stem. This is a new record of this pest from Andaman and Nicobar Islands.