Cossula duplex Dyar & Schaus, 1937 (Lepidoptera: Cossidae): a wood borer of Caryocar brasiliense Cambess in the Brazilian Savanna

Over the past years, there have been several observations of pequi trees (Caryocar brasiliense Cambess.) being infested with a large wood boring insect that compromises the structural integrity and health of the trees. However, the economic losses caused by this damage were attributed to an unidentified cossid. The present study aims to identify the species causing this damage in the Brazilian Savanna by monitoring trees exhibiting damage with the goal of capturing emerging adults. In total, 12 adults were collected, preserved and identified by comparison of the genitalia. All specimens (male and female) were identified as Cossula duplex Dyar & Schaus, 1937. This species was previously not recorded from Brazilian Savannah regions and is reported for the first time from the Brazilian states of Minas Gerais and Goias. Further studies are needed to evaluate the association of this species to the mortality of C. brasiliense, an economically important and endangered species of the Brazilian Savannah.