The department of Piura is the main mango producer in Peru accounting for 66.7% of the national crop. The objective of the study was to characterize the fruits of forty varieties of mango preserved since 1969 in northwestern Peru. The fruits were harvested at the El Chira Agrarian Experimental Station, Department of Piura from December 2019 to January 2020. Thirteen quantitative fruit variables were evaluated: width, thickness, length, weight, seed width, seed thickness, seed length, percentage of seed, percentage of fresh skin, percentage of pulp, texture, °Brix, and pulp / seed ratios. The varieties with the highest percentage of pulp were Tommy Atkins, Haden x carabao 1, Irwin, and Jaffra, the latter was also the variety with the highest pulp / seed ratio (17.0). The varieties with the highest ° Brix were Blacman (21.3 ° Brix) and Julie (22.0 ° Brix). Knowledge of the fruit characteristics is essential for proper selection and use by the industry, especially those with a higher pulp weight to obtaining higher yields in processing.

Brevipalpus yothersi Baker (Acari: Tenuipalpidae) is reported for the first time on cocoa, Theobroma cacao L. (Malvaceae) in northwestern Peru. Mites were collected from organic cocoa smallholdings from September to December 2020 in eight localities (three Provinces) of the Piura Department. The highest mite population density was found on peduncle and epicarps of fruits of different phenological stages, and the lowest density on the leaves.

Seeds from the cocoa tree, Theobroma cacao L. (Malvaceae), make up the raw materials for cocoa which is used to produce chocolate. In Peru, cocoa is produced mainly by smallholder farmers under a small-scale agriculture model. During March and September 2020, surveys of organic smallholding farms were conducted in four Districts of the Department of Piura in northwestern Peru. Three species of the family Tuckerellidae (peacock mites) were collected and identified from this region in Peru: namely Tuckerella ornata (Tucker), Tu. pavoniformis (Ewing), and Tu. knorri Baker & Tuttle. In this article, we report the presence of peacock mites affecting cocoa crops in Peru for the first time. The populations of peacock mites found in the cocoa trees were considerable and causing significant fruit damage. A key to the species of Tuckerella found in cocoa is presented.

The family Tuckerellidae, or peacock mites, is a monogeneric group comprising approximately 32 species, which are usually collected from the fruits or woody parts of their host plants. Fruits and branchlets of mamey, Mammea americana L. (Calophyllaceae) trees in north-western Peru were sampled for peacock mites throughout spring and summer for two consecutive years. This is the first record of Tuckerella pavoniformis (Ewing) (Acari: Tuckerellidae) feeding on mamey. Aggregations of mites were much higher and more common on the fruit epicarps than on branchlets. Recommendations for the development of an Integrated Pest Management strategy for this peacock mite are included.