Assessment of the major insect pests associated with kola nuts in Ghana

ABSTRACT Cola nitida (Kola) is an important cash crop cultivated in the forest areas of West Africa. The crop is attacked by a lot of insect pests, chief among them are the kola seed weevil, Balanogastris kolae, and some Sophrorhinus pest species. Not much is known about the pest status of fruit fly species on the crop, especially Bactrocera invadens and Ceratitis colae which is known to feed exclusively on the crop. This study seeks to assess the incidence, population dynamics and damage caused by insect pests on kola in the middle belt of Ghana to inform pest management decisions. The major insect pests identified on kola in the study include the kola seed weevils Balanogastris kolae, Sophrorhinus spp and fruit fly species Bactrocera invadens, Ceratitis colae and other Ceratitis spp. There was a significant locational effect on the number of fruit fly species trapped. The kola nut weevils (Balanogastris kolae and the Sophrorhinus species) remain the most important kola pests accounting for 81.4% of the sampled damaged pods. Information obtained from the population dynamics of these kola insect pests could aid in the development of an integrated strategy for managing these pests on the crop.