ABSTRACT The temporal distribution of four important cocoa mirid species (Distantiella theobroma Dist, Sahlbergella singularis Hagl, Helopeltis bergothii and Bryocoropsis laticollis) was studied in three differently managed cocoa farming systems from May 2013 to April 2014. In addition, the incidence of Bathycoelia thalassina, Characoma stictigrapta, Anomis leona, Earias biplaga, Eulophonotus myrmeleon, Oecophylla longinoda and Crematogaster africana, were recorded. The three systems were: Or...
ABSTRACT Surveys were conducted to identify the natural enemies of the oil palm leafminer, Coelaenomenodera lameensis Berti and Mariau (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae). Different developmental stages were recovered from infested leaflets and reared for the emergence of parasitoids. Four parasitoids all belonging to the order Hymenoptera and family Eulophidae were identified. They were Neochrysocharis species, Chrysocharis species, Pleurotroppopsis species and Apleurotropis species. Parasitism on C...
ABSTRACT A study was conducted to develop a quick and efficient laboratory mass-rearing method for the cocoa aphid Toxoptera aurantii (Boy) and to screen cocoa genotypes for their resistance to the aphid. In a similar experiment, two cocoa genotypes were screened to determine their level of attractiveness to the cocoa capsid Sahlbergella singularis Hagl and the results compared with those from the aphid study. The study formed part of an on-going programme being conducted by the Cocoa Researc...
ABSTRACT Studies were conducted on some aspects of the biology of Chilo aleniellus (Strand) and Sesamia nonagrioid.es botanephaga Tams and Bowden in Southern Ghana. The life cycle of S. n. botanephaga revealed 8 developmental stages; the egg, 5 larval instars, a prepupa and a pupa. Female S. n. botanephaga was found to lay 330 ± 17.7 eggs within a period of 5 days. She required three surfaces to lay her eggs, which were mainly deposited, on the inner side of the leaf sheath fitting tightly...
ABSTRACT Thrips are crop pests causing damage to a wide range of crops ranging from fruits to vegetables to ornamentals through direct feeding or oviposition on plants. The main objective of this study was to determine the species composition of thrips and their host range in some selected parts of Greater Accra and Eastern Regions of Ghana. Thrips were collected from flowers, leaves and twigs of vegetable, ornamental and tree crops by beating and jarring and identified to species level. Fi...
ABSTRACT The efficacy of Waste Brewers‟ Yeast (WBY) + Imidacloprid (Akape® ) (insecticide) as food bait was compared with the novel fruit fly food bait, commercially available as SUCCESS APPAT® (GF-120) in the field as attractants for the management of fruit flies in mango orchards at the Coastal Savanna ecological zone for two major seasons (2010/2011 and 2011/2012). Randomised Complete Block Des...
ABSTRACT Malaria is a threat to more than 40% of the world's population accounting for more than 300 million acute cases and between 1.1 and 2.7 million deaths annually. Over 90% of the malaria cases are in sub-Saharan Africa, constituting 10% of the total disease burden. Currently activities support the extensive use of insecticide treated materials for malaria control. However these efforts are threatened by the evolution of resistance in the main malaria vectors, Anopheles gambiae s.l. tow...
ABSTRACT The rapid increase in bed bug resistance to pyrethroids call for the development of novel control strategies. Products combining pyrethroids and neonicotinoids have become very popular for bed bug control in Ghana and around the world. However, concerns about evolution of resistance to these compounds have been scantly reported in Ghana. Over the years, various control measures have been employed to control bed bug populations of which chemical insecticides are the most common metho...
ABSTRACT This research was carried out to investigate the species variability within Afrotropical stingless bees of the genus Hypotrigona (Cockerell) in three districts in the Central Region of Ghana. Hypotrigona species are common visitors to flowering plants in the tropics and subtropics. Structurally, the three known Afrotropical Hypotrigona species are very similar and pose difficulty in accurately identifying existing species. In view of this taxonomic impediment, this present study aime...
ABSTRACT Livestock are vital to subsistence and economic development, providing food, income, employment, manure and savings for Sub-Saharan African farmers. Diseases and arthropod ectoparasite infestations often impact negatively on livestock production and productivity. This study assessed the effects of arthropod ectoparasite infestations on the productivity of three ruminant (cattle, sheep and goats) livestock species in three Districts of Southern Ghana around the Volta River. A total of...
ABSTRACT Cabbage is a popular vegetable grown in Ghana and serves as an important source of livelihood for small-scale farmers, especially in urban areas. However, its cultivation encounters several constraints such as attack by insect pests. A key insect pest is aphid that cause significant to the crops as they serve as vectors of plant diseases. Farmers thus resort to indiscriminate use of insecticides to reduce the damage caused by insect pests. However, insecticides are associated with ad...
ABSTRACT Bedbugs are blood-sucking insects of the order Hemiptera and family Cimicidae that derive nutrition from vertebrates, including humans, their feeding is allied to the transmitting several fungal, bacterial and viral infections. A rise in international travels and emergence of insecticide resistant bedbugs within the past decade has led to renewed interest in studying these insects. Anecdotally, bedbugs exist in homes, boarding houses, hotels and other human dwellings in Ghana but hav...
ABSTRACT Tephritid fruit flies are a major threat to the horticultural industry in sub-Saharan Africa owing to the heavy losses they cause to fruit and vegetable crops, and the resultant quarantine restrictions. Addressing the fruit fly menace in Ghana requires effective stakeholder training along the fruit value chain, coupled with adequate research information on management strategies. Baseline studies were conducted in northern Ghana to determine the priority management training needs of f...
ABSTRACT Sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas Lam.) is a staple food crop for a large proportion of the population in sub-Saharan Africa. One important factor limiting its production and utilisation is infestation by weevils belonging to the genus Cylas, commonly known as sweetpotato weevils. The use of host plant resistance is an essential component for the integrated pest management of sweetpotato weevils. In this study, the susceptibility of some Ghanaian sweet potato varieties to infestations by...
ABSTRACT The sterile insect technique involves mass rearing of male insects for sterility purpose. This heavily relies on male fitness and genetic compatibility of laboratory-adapted male insects and the wild to ensure successful competition with their male counterpart in the wild. Uniform environment in the laboratory as compared to the wild conditions might lead to genetic drift which might lead to reduced sexual competitiveness, fitness, morphological changes or changes in the sexual behav...