Cape Gooseberry Budworm

H. assulta is distributed across three continents: Asia, Africa and Australia. In Asia, populations of H. assulta are specifically found in China, Korea, Thailand, and Japan. Environmental conditions, like temperature and geographic locality, can impact the fecundity of the moth.

H. assulta is a pest of red peppers (Capsicum frutescens ), tobacco (Nicotiatna tabacum), tomato, and onion. They prefer to eat red peppers over tobacco, but are still considered a pest to both. In order to develop and survive successfully, the moth must both have access to nutrient rich food, and be able to digest and uptake the nutrients.

Capsaicin. H. assulta is one of very few insects that can successfully feed on and damage plants, such as hot peppers, containing capsaicin. Studies show that long-term dietary exposure to capsaicin stimulates larger larvae. Furthermore, its unique tolerance to capsaicin may have allowed H. assulta to expand its host range.

Larvae. Hatching larvae feed on tender or new leaves near the site of oviposition. When it goes through instar, larvae feed on the fruit and flowers of the host, and can infest the host over the course of their development. Newly hatched larvae exhibit a great preference for tender tobacco leaves, followed by pepper and tomato leaves. The success of H. assulta is significantly dependent on its larval diet. Larvae that fed on tobacco had a significantly greater fecundity than those that fed on red peppers. The sex ratio differs slightly depending on the type of food the larvae feed on. Larvae who feed on mainly tobacco have a higher female ratio compared to those which feed on mainly pepper. The H. …