Marmara gulosa
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Author(s): B. Shelley
Source: iNaturalist
Author(s): Justin C. Smith, Ministry for Primary Industries
Source: PaDIL
Marmara gulosa Guillén & Davis, 2001 - (citrus peelminer)
This small leafminer moth is found in southern parts of North America and in Cuba. Apart from mining the leaves of several plants, it also breeds in the peels of citrus fruits, in particular in grapefruits. Although the damage is only cosmetic, it makes the fruits unmarketable. During outbreak years in California, the moth has caused losses of around 25% with a peak of 80-90% in some areas (Guillén et al., 2003). The moth populations persists in unharvested fruits until the next year.
The original host appears to be the willow species, Salix lasiolepis, which has a native distribution along the western parts of North America. Alternative hosts, apart from citrus are oleander, cotton, avocado and green pepper. Heavy damage to grapefruit plantations is often associated with these alternating hosts in the vicinity like oleander bushes. Several natural enemies like the parasitoid Cirrospilus coachellae have been identified which can bring outbreaks under control.
