Carmenta foraseminis EICHLIN (LEPIDOPTERA: SESIIDAE), A NEW CACAO PEST IN PERU

The cocoa fruit borer (Carmenta foraseminis) occursin Colombia, Venezuela, Brazil, and has impactedthe cocoa fruit production in all these countries. The current study reports this species as a new pest of cocoa in Peru,where the occurrence of the species is recorded in severalcocoa-growing regions. Resulting infestations can affect up to 62% of fruits. Regional climatic periodicity (seasons of high rainfall and relative drought) do not affect the levels of pest infestation (P> 0.05; χ2 test); however, plot altitude has a positive relationship with pest infestation levels (P<.018; Pearson's test). The ICS-1 clone has significantly lower infestation rates than other clones evaluated (P<.001; χ2 test). Since the commercial use of unripecocoa fruits is increasing, the quality of the overall harvestis at risk.