Crops: Tomato Insect Pests
Tomato Fruitworm - Helicoverpa zea (Lepidoptera)
- Monophagous in nature.
- Female moth has bright yellowish forewings with a distinct black spot at the center with brownish yellow tuft of hair at the tip of abdomen. Hind wings are straw coloured.
- Full grown larva is (2.5 cm) yellowish white with orange yellow head.
- Newly hatched larvae hang down by silken thread, enter the leaf sheath, feed for 2-3 days and then bore into the stem, usually 5-10 cm above the water level.
- One of the most damaging insect pests of tomato
- The larvae are variable in color, ranging from pale yellow, to red, to green, to brown with pale stripes running lengthwise.
- Young larvae have several rows of black bumps along their backs and two bristle-like hairs in each bump.
- Older larvae are densely covered with microscopic spines that make the larvae feel rough.
- Fruit worms overwinter as pupae in the top 2-6 inches of soil.
- The moths lay eggs at night on leaves near green fruit. Eggs are white when first laid and develop a reddish brown band 24 hr before hatching.
