Re: Light Brown Apple Moth

It has been in Hawaii for a while. Did some checking and apparently form the 1800's. Currently it isnt a big pest. Dont know what it was like when it first arrived. I concur with Jason, very hard to say what a new speices will do in an area with out its associated predators or parasites. However, apparently in Hawaii a speceis of Trichogramma wasps is proably the most important parasite. Suspect that trichogramma get around and people will find them already in CA. I actually went looking for LBAM once upon a time and could never find them, even though where I am living is mild climate most of the year and not unlike coastal southern california (3700 feet elevation and in the rain shadow of the mountain). And yes we got apples, pears, grapes,etc.... ----- Original Message ----- From: "Jason D" <jjuania@yahoo.com> 
To: <khe36747@bigpond.net.au>; <medit-plants@ucdavis.edu>
Sent: Saturday, April 07, 2007 6:26 PM
Subject: Re: Light Brown Apple Moth



Here in California they are unlikely to be held in
check by their natural predators (since those species
don't likely live here), and if the LBAM is active
during certain times of certain temperature ranges,
the possibility exists that in our milder coastal
regions they would remain active for much longer than
in habitat.
There's no telling how an exotic species will perform
out of its natural context.
Jason Dewees
San Francisco

--- khe36747 <khe36747@bigpond.net.au> wrote:


I don't know if my experience with light brown apple
moth is relevant as like plants out of place, pests
out of place seem to behave differently, but here
goes. Here in their natural habitat, I find they are
a seasonal pest of spring and occasionally autumn,
and they seem to have a very narrow temperature
range. Once it heats up or gets cool they disappear.
They seem to last a week or two twice a year. They
are destructive of new growth but of established
plants, trees a year or two old, not seedlings. They
prefer what used to be called eucalypts. Rarely do
they do so much damage that the tree is compromised
but if an infestation is followed by any adverse
event then the tree may die. A bad infestation does
seem to weaken a plant in ways that are not obvious.
Treating them seems to be a waste of time here as
the climate usually takes care of them and they seem
unresponsive to everything except plunging the
beggers in hot water and screaming 'die you demons,
die'. I am curious as to what you are being
threatened with by way of the consequences of their
arrival, because, as I mentioned they are a minor
problem here rather than one of those things that
make me think lovingly of concrete and parking lots.

Margaret Healey
Near Ballarat
----- Original Message ----- From: p.k.peirce@att.net 
  To: medit-plants@ucdavis.edu
  Sent: Saturday, April 07, 2007 4:49 AM
  Subject: Light Brown Apple Moth


  I have just been reading about the light brown
apple moth, which has just been found in the
California Bay Area. I am wondering if there are
members from other continents who have any
experience with this pest?

  It seems to eat everything (well 250 species, in
many plant families). It is from S.E. Australia. I
wonder if it has moved to mediterranean parts of
that continent or other mediterranean areas? The
article in yesterday's Chronicle (Business Section,
for California members--you can read the article on
sfgate.com) says it has invaded New Zealand,
Ireland, the United Kingdom, and Hawaii. From the
Web, I think maybe it is in Europe too?

  My question is whether any members live in areas
where it has invaded, and, if so, is it as awful as
it sounds? What is done locally to manage it?

  Thanks,

  Pam Peirce
San Francisco, CA
Other Mailing lists | Author Index | Date Index | Subject Index | Thread Index