Insect Pests Intercepted During Quarantine Processing of Exotic planting Material in 2003
Quarantine examination of 1, 42, 170 exotic samples of various crops during 2003 revealed that 621 samples were found infested with insect and mite pests including 134 with hidden infestation. Interceptions made during visual examination include: Araecerus sp. in Zea mays from USA; Rhizopertha dominica in Triticum aestivum and Hordeum vulgare from Australia and ICARDA (Syria); Sitophilus zeamais in Zea mays from USA; Sitotroga cerealella in Oryza saliva from Nepal; staphylinid beetle in Mentha sp. from Japan; scale insects in Mangifera spp. and Cornus mas cuttings and mites in vegetative material of Salix alba and Mentha sp from Belgium and Japan, respectively. Pests detected by X-ray radiography techniques include: Acanthoscelides obtectus in Phaseolus vulgaris from Colombia; Bruchidius sp. in Trifolium alexandrinum fromEgypt, B. atrolineatus in Vigna unguiculata fromNigeria, Bruchus dentipes in Vicia faba from ICARDA (Syria); B. pisorum in Pisum sativum from Bulgaria and Eritrea, B. lentis in Lens culinaris from Syria, B. atrolineatus, Callosobruchus analis, C. chinensis and C. maculatus in V. unguiculata from Nigeria and C. chinensis in V. faba from Eritrea. All the infested samples were salvaged mechanically or by using suitable treatments.