Exotic pulse beetles intercepted in imported legume germplasm

Quarantine examination of 13,29,901 imported seed samples of various crops during 1999- 2014 revealed presence of exotic bruchids commonly called seed or pulse beetles in 2,819 samples which were detected by X-ray radiography. Thirteen exotic bruchid species viz., Acanthoscelides desmanthi in Desmanths spp. from Colombia, A. obtectus in Phaseolus vulgaris from Argentina, Colombia Mexico, Peru; Bruchidius atrolineatus in Vigna unguiculata from Nigeria; Bruchus affinis in Vicia faba from Afghanistan; B. dentipes in Vicia spp. from Afghanistan, ICARDA (Syria) and Syria; B. ervi in Lens spp. from Afghanistan, Chile, Cyprus, Ethiopia, Germany, Greece, ICARDA (Syria), Iran, Iraq, Italy, Jordan, Lebanon, Mexico, Morocco, Russian Federation, Syria and Turkey; B. nubilis in V. faba from Ukraine; B. rufimanus in V. faba from Afghanistan, Canada, Spain and Syria; B. signaticornis in L. culinaris from ICARDA (Syria); B. tristis in Lathyrus odoratus from ICARDA (Syria); B. tristiculus in V. narborensis from Portugal; Callosobruchus rhodesianus in Vigna unguiculata from Nigeria and C. subinnotatus in V. subterranea from Ghana were intercepted. Many of the pulse beetles were intercepted repeatedly from the same/ different source(s) year after year. All the infested samples were salvaged using suitable disinfestation treatments. None of the intercepted beetles are yet reported from India, and are therefore, of high quarantine significance.