ABSTRACT
The cultivated tomato, Lycopersicon esculentum (L.) Miller, is attacked by a number of arthropod pests, which are capable of causing devastating losses (Lange and Bronson 1981). The pest complex includes species that feed almost exclusively on foliage (e.g. spider mites, dipterous leafminers), species that feed on both foliage and fruit [such as the lepidopterans Helicoverpa zea (Boddie) and Spodoptera exigua (Boddie)] and species such as aphids and whiteflies that feed on plant sap. Because tomato is a high-value crop, which must meet rigorous market standards that preclude even minimal damage to the harvested fruit, populations of pests that attack the fruit must be maintained at very low levels. Consequently, management of insect pests on tomato has relied heavily on chemical control measures.
