Insects associated with Cocoa (Theobroma cacao) in Malaya

Abstract

The planting of cocoa in Malaya at the present time must be considered to have reached the experimental stage only, and the data obtained so far are insufficient to warrant a recommendation for its adoption either as a plantation or a small-holder's crop.

Confirmation that Helopeltis species attacking cacao in Yogyakarta is Helopeltis bradyi Waterhouse, not Helopeltis antonii Signoret (Heteroptera: Miridae)

“…The body length of males and females ranged between 6.11-6.88 mm and 7.22-8.33 mm consecutively. Both measurements fall within the observed range for H. bradyi (6.6-8.6 mm Stonedahl 1991), and are slightly bigger than that of H. antonii (5.9 or 6.0 mm and 8.0 mm, Stonedahl 1991; Ambika & Abraham 1979), and significantly larger than that of H. theivora (4.8 mm and 5.7 mm, Miller 1941).…”

“…This proportion was also found by Miller (1941) on H. theobramae (now identified as H. theivora), and Ambika & Abraham (1979) on H. antonii (ca. 0.42 mm and 0.73 mm).…”

“…The nymphs and adults in our sample population fromYogyakarta (Table 4) were larger than those of H. theivora (Miller 1941) and H. clavifer (Smith 1979) but similar in size to those of H. antonii (Ambika & Abraham 1979). They were all yellowish orange to brown in coloration.…”

“…The length of the eggs in our sample population not including the respiratory horn average 1.31 mm or about 6× their width (Table 3). These eggs are larger than those of H. theivora, H. clavifer, H. schoutedeni, and H. antonii, which range in length from 1.0-1.23 mm (Miller 1941;Smith 1979;Ambika & Abraham 1979;Dwomoh et al 2008 consecutively). The mean length of the respiratory horns of these eggs (0.57 mm and 0.30 mm) is slightly longer than the longer horn (0.5 mm) but also shorter than the shorter horn (0.4 mm) of H. schoutedeni (Dwomoh et al 2008) and H. antonii (Ambika & Abraham 1979).…”

Biology of the tea mosquito bug (Helopeltis theivora Waterhouse) on Chromolaena odorata (L.) R.M. King & H. Rob.

“…It also has been reported damaging other economically important plants such as black pepper, camphor, cashew and cinchona (Stonedahl, 1991). Additional host plants of this species were given by Miller (1941) and Das (1984).…”