Abstract
Specimens of seed bugs are recorded as pests of groundnuts, sorghum and cotton in Africa, usually under the name Aphanus apicalis Dall. or Rhyparochromus apicalis (Dall.). It is shown that these pests belong to the genus Naphius Stål and, further, that not all should be placed in the species N. apicalis (Dall.). A study of the genus Naphius shows that there are seven distinct species in the Ethiopian region. The true N. apicalis is shown to be the species that is known to cause damage to pumpkin in Rhodesia and sorghum in Nigeria: the pest of groundnuts in Senegal and Gambia is N. zavattarii (Mancini), not N. apicalis. To date, the other species of Naphius in Africa are not reported as pests. The known distribution of the two pest species is illustrated; N. apicalis occurs throughout tropical Africa, but N. zavattarii seems to be confined to the northern and eastern parts of Africa south of the Sahara, with the latter also present in the Canary Is, and cape Verde Is.
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