Survey of two artichoke moths “Gortyna xanthenes(Germar) and Depressaria erinaceella(Staudinger)” in Tunisia

Gortyna xanthenes(Germar) and Depressaria erinaceella(Staudinger) are key pests of artichoke in Tunisia causing major losses. To this end, a 2-year field survey was carried out in order to assess possible damage caused by these two pests. The results showed that serious attacks were found on artichoke flower heads ranging from 17 to 26% and from 7 to 10% for D. erinaceellaand G. xanthenes, respectively. On stems, damages caused by G. xanthenesmay exceed 60%. Measures of the length of the larva and the width of head capsule in the laboratory showed the presence of six and seven instar larvae for G. xanthenesand D. erinaceella, respectively. These results could be very useful to develop effective management tools against artichoke pests in Tunisia.