Helicoverpa armigera reached mainland of United States‏
Date:08-05-2015
Three years after it was identified for the first time in Brazil, the
helicoverpa armigera (often called corn earworm or cotton bollworm) reached in the territory of the United States. Originally from Australia, the caterpillars have been detected in several countries of Europe, Asia, Africa, and Oceania, and so far its presence was just recorded in North American soil in the island of Puerto Rico.
The first occurrence at the U.S. mainland was confirmed by the Animal and Plant Inspection Service of the USDA last Wednesday. At the statement, the agency announced that the two caterpillars were found on traps of a tomato farm and a third was detected at a neighboring field in Bradenton, Matatee County, Florida. A surface of 2,300 hectares around the region is being monitored by the government to determine if it is an isolated occurrence.
Experts have alerted for a "mainland invasion" of helicoverpa armigera in the United States since it was found in Puerto Rico in September of 2014. Now, the attentions will go to tracking of the plague propagation in the country. "I believe that the greater risk at this moment in the Southeast region because of the winds of Florida go in the direction of Carolinas," declared researcher David Kerns, entomologist of the University of Louisiana, for DTN website.
A study published by the University of Minnesota in March indicates that 65% of US crops would be susceptible to plague. "The annual value of the crop that would be exposed to helicoverpa armigera totaled about $ 78 billion, of which US $ 843 million are in regions with climatic conditions that are ideal for the proliferation of the caterpillar," says the document.
In Brazil, the caterpillar was first identified in the 2012/13 crop, when a large outbreak in Bahia caused losses of up to 80% of the state cotton production. Since then, events have been confirmed in several other crops such as soybeans, corn, tomatoes, beans, sorghum, millet and wheat in Maranhao, Piaui, Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul, Goias, Minas Gerais and Paraná. Worldwide, the annual cost of control and production losses amount to $ 5 billion, according to a study by the Federal University of Goiás (UFG), in partnership with the Mato Grosso Foundation.
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