Pests of important nitrogen fixing trees that tolerate acid soils

Luko Hilje and Marcela Arguedas

Table 1 lists the pest species known to affect nitrogen fixing trees that tolerate acid soils. The term "pest" refers to any organism - insect, pathogen, vertebrate animal, or parasitic plant - that is actually or potentially harmful to reproductive structures, seedlings, stumps, or established trees. Most of the information presented in the table comes from Central America. The table also presents worldwide data from Boa and Lenn‚ (1994) on the following species: Acacia angustissima, Acacia auriculiformis, Casuarina cunninghamiana, Flemingia macrophylla, Gliricidia septum, Inga edulis, and Paraserianthes falcataria.

In Central America, most of the pest species listed here have been of minor importance. More than half of these pests attack tree foliage, but trees can normally compensate for damage to their foliage, so the impact of these pests on overall tree growth is generally not serious. However, damage to foliage can be important to fanners if they are raising trees primarily for fodder production.

Oncideres punctata and Platypus species have been the most serious pests of acid-tolerant nitrogen fixing trees because they attack wood. The adult female of Oncideres punctata girdles several nitrogen fixing tree species. Adult Platypus beetles feed on Acacia species, but they appear primarily to damage trees that have already been weakened by adverse soil and climatic conditions. The stingless bee Trigona silvestriana is commonly blamed for this damage, but the bees only enlarge the holes made by the beetles.

Several pest species can attack both trees and agricultural crops. This can pose serious problems if susceptible plants are combined in agroforestry systems.

For example, in the South Pacific Erythrina species serve as hosts to the fruit-piercing moth Othreis fullonia.

The list of pests that affect Erythrina species has been limited to the most common species. Some 70 insect and 12 mite species have been reported to attack Erythrina species in Central America.

Table 1. Pests that attack nitrogen fixing tree species tolerant of acid soils.

Table 1. Pests that attack nitrogen fixing tree species tolerant of acid soils. (cont-1)

Table 1. Pests that attack nitrogen fixing tree species tolerant of acid soils. (cont-2)

Table 1. Pests that attack nitrogen fixing tree species tolerant of acid soils. (cont-3)

Table 1. Pests that attack nitrogen fixing tree species tolerant of acid soils. (cont-4)

Table 1. Pests that attack nitrogen fixing tree species tolerant of acid soils. (cont-5)

Table 1. Pests that attack nitrogen fixing tree species tolerant of acid soils. (cont-6)

Table 1. Pests that attack nitrogen fixing tree species tolerant of acid soils. (cont-7)

Table 1. Pests that attack nitrogen fixing tree species tolerant of acid soils. (cont-8)