ANTHONOMUS RUBI (HERBST, 1795) (COLEOPTERA: CURCULIONIDAE) A NEW DANGEROUS PEST IN THE ECOLOGICAL CROPS OF STRAWBERRY IN THE SOUTHERN REGIONS OF ROMANIA

• Main Authors: Traian MANOLE, Irina IONESCU-MĂLĂNCUŞ, Petru NICULIŢĂ, Eugenia PETRESCU
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine, Bucharest 2013-12-01
• Series: Scientific Papers Series : Management, Economic Engineering in Agriculture and Rural Development
• Subjects: Curculionidae; ecological crops; new pest; strawberry blossom weevil
• Online Access: http://managementjournal.usamv.ro/pdf/vol3_4/Art31.pdf

In Romania mostly of 70% of strawberry ecological plantations were cultivated with specific commercial cultivars like Premial, Red Gauntlet, Dana and Elsanta. In the last years became to be cropped cultivars with increased resistance to various pest insects, specially in the first stages of vegetation period like Honeoye, Elsanta, Camorosa, Marmolada, Chandler, Darselect, Clery and Sonata. On the little individual farms with small surfaces the cultivars Senga Sengana, Marmolada, Elsinore should be the primary source of infestation with Anthonomus rubi.A study of distribution, density and the degree attack of Anthonomus rubi was carried out in the period 2006-2007 in the Vidra and Comana localities, Giurgiu district in the southern part of Romania. The study and observations that was made showed that this species is increased in density in the new ecological plantations of strawberry from some individual farms. The strawberry blossom weevil is not a common pest of strawberry plantations in Romania but some cultivars cropped in ecological system became more sensitive to the weevil attack by increasing in density. Observations and researches were carried out on 4 cultivars and showed that the degree of damage caused by A. rubi depends of cultivar morphological characteristics (small fruits) or phenophases (time of ripening and duration of budding and blossoming).