Chromolaena odorata (L.) King and Robinson, a plant of Neotropical origin is Considered as a seri... more Chromolaena odorata (L.) King and Robinson, a plant of Neotropical origin is Considered as a serious weed of plantation crops,forests and grazing lands of South Asian and African countries, including India (Holms et al ., 1977). Field releases of the exotic host-specific biological control agent Pareuchaetes pseudoinsulata Rego Barros (Lepidoptera : Arctiidae) in different parts of South India, resulted in only localised defoliation (Jayanth and Ganga Visalakshy, 1993), necessitating manual and chemical methods even in areas where the insects were released. A study on the effect of herbicides on the insect was made under laboratory conditions, to see if both can be integrated.
The water hyacinth weevil, Neochetina eichhorniae, is an effective biological control agent of th... more The water hyacinth weevil, Neochetina eichhorniae, is an effective biological control agent of the aquatic weed Eichorniae crassipes. The adults under field conditions have degenerated indirect flight muscles that explains their inability to fly. A study on the factors initiating flight muscle development in adults was carried out. Among the various abiotic factors studied, density of weevils per plant and
Zygogramma bicolorata Pallister (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae), a biological control agent of Parthe... more Zygogramma bicolorata Pallister (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae), a biological control agent of Parthenium hysterophorus L. (Asteraceae), was feeding on leaves of Helianthus annuus in India, raising concerns of its host range. Based on the age grading technique, it was shown that the ...
Forty-five days old adults of Ceutorhynchus portulacae Marshall could survive up to 55 days, hidi... more Forty-five days old adults of Ceutorhynchus portulacae Marshall could survive up to 55 days, hiding In cracks and crevices in soil which reflects their survival capacity in the absence of food when Portulaca oleracea was completely removed by mechanical or chemical means and can be a probable candidate for the biological control of this deadly weed.
Detailed studies on the oviposition behaviour of H. antonii on different types of guava Psidium g... more Detailed studies on the oviposition behaviour of H. antonii on different types of guava Psidium guajava fruit from April to December that corresponds from fruiting to harvesting period was carried out in 2015.A shift in the egg laying pattern in relation to availability of fruits of different types were recorded during the season. Maximum number of eggs /fruit was recorded on unmatured scabby cracked fruits in the initial season of fruiting which shifted to ripe scabby fruits with the advancement of season. However data analysis on the egg laying for the entire season recorded significantly more number of eggs /fruit on un matured scabby cracked fruits. Co- relation between the availability of fruit type and number of eggs resulted in a positive linear curve with R2 value = 0.97 indicating that unmatured scabby and cracked fruits contain more eggs than other types of fruits screened.
Augmentative releases of newly emerged larvae of Bactra venosana, offsetting the impact of egg p... more Augmentative releases of newly emerged larvae of Bactra venosana, offsetting the impact of egg parasitoids was recommended for suppression of the weed Cyperus rorundur. This necessitated development of a mass rearing technique for large scale field releases. The present paper reports of an artificial diet developed for mass multiplication of R. venasana larvae.
Antagonistic effect of an entomopathogenic fungus Metarhizium anisopliae was evaluated against pl... more Antagonistic effect of an entomopathogenic fungus Metarhizium anisopliae was evaluated against plant pathogens Colletotrichum gloeosporioides, Pestalotia mangeferae and Botrydipliodia theobromae causing anthracnose, leaf blight, fruit rot and fruit tip rot on mango. Results indicated M. anisopliae inhibited the growth of C. gloeosporioides and P. mangiferae, where as B. theobromae was not inhibited.
The perennial compositae plant Chromolaena odorala (L.) R.M. King and H. Robinson, native to West... more The perennial compositae plant Chromolaena odorala (L.) R.M. King and H. Robinson, native to West Indies and South America, is a serious weed of plantation crops in southern Asia including India and Western Africa, (Holm et al., 1977; Bennett and Rao, 1968). Pareuchaetes pseudoinsulata Rego Barros (Lepidoptera: Arctiidae), detennined initially as Ammalo insulala (Walker). Is one of the natural enemies recommended for introduction into India and other countries (Bennet and Crutwell, 1973). Introduction of this insect from Sri Lanka in 1985 has resulted in successful establishment in Kerala (Joy el al., 1985).
Potential of Dolichogenidea stantoni (Ashmead) as a biocontrol agent for the melon borer Diaphani... more Potential of Dolichogenidea stantoni (Ashmead) as a biocontrol agent for the melon borer Diaphania indica (Saunders) was investigated during 2014-15 at field level. Influence of abiotic and biotic factors on the population dynamics of D. indica indicted that it was positively correlated with morning relative humidity and rainfall and was negatively correlated with evaporation, parasitism by parasitoids D. stantoni and Goniozus sensorius . Both abiotic and biotic factors collectively contributed 73.7 per cent to the variation in the D. indica population, in which 62.70 per cent of the fluctuation could be predicted by parasitism by D. stantoni alone indicating that parasitism by D. stantoni plays a major role in regulating the population of D. indica.
The melon borer, Diaphania indica (Saunders) (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae), is a serious pest of tropi... more The melon borer, Diaphania indica (Saunders) (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae), is a serious pest of tropical and subtropical cucurbitaceous vegetables. A suitable artificial diet is desirable for producing uniform insects for commercial purposes or research. Four new artificial diets (D-1, D-2, D-3 and D-4) and bitter gourd, the natural host plant of D. indica, were used for rearing D. indica, and the life parameters were compared. The results indicated that insects could complete a full life cycle after 3 generations, only when the larvae were fed bitter gourd or the diet D-1.The new artificial diet, D-1 was formulated based on bitter gourd leaves, Momordica charantia (L.) and chick pea, Cicer arietinum L. Developmental parameters like egg hatching, larval duration and longevity of the adult reared on the D-1 artificial diet were found to be significantly improved relative to the other three diets (D-2, D-3 and D-4), but were not significantly better than those reared on the host-plant bit...
Diaphania indica (Saunders) is a pyralid moth that causes damage to several cucurbit crops all ov... more Diaphania indica (Saunders) is a pyralid moth that causes damage to several cucurbit crops all over the world. Dolichogenidea stantoni (Ashmead) is a gregarious endoparasitoid of D. indica larva. We hypothesized that the degree of parasitism and reproductive success of D. stantoni is affected by the host plant of D. indica. Four host plants were used to determine the success of parasitism by D. stantoni. Choice and non-choice tests showed that D. stantoni is able to parasitize D. indica larvae on the all the four host plants. However, bottle gourd and cucumber had a lower percent of parasitism than bitter gourd and ridge gourd. Our findings revealed that the rate of parasitism and reproductive success of D. stantoni is affected by the host plant of D. indica.
The tea mosquito bug, Helopeltis antonii Signoret, is an economically important pest of guava in ... more The tea mosquito bug, Helopeltis antonii Signoret, is an economically important pest of guava in recent years causing significant reduction in yield and marketable fruits. An entomopathogen, Beauveria bassiana, was isolated from the adult bug infesting guava from KVK, IIHR, Hirehalli (Tumkur). This is the first report of B. bassiana infecting H. antonii . Further field studies on the efficacy of this pathogen againdt H.antonii on guava are suggested.
Laboratory and field studies were conducted to evaluate responses of melon flies, Bactrocera cucu... more Laboratory and field studies were conducted to evaluate responses of melon flies, Bactrocera cucurbitae and Oriental fruit flies, B. dorsalis to different doses (0.5 g, 1 g, 2 g and 3 g) of para-pheromones Cuelure and Methyl eugenol respectively. Electroantennogram (EAG) response was recorded in mV with male antennae of B. curcurbitae and B. dorsalis whereas field evaluation was carried out under farmers’ field condition with dispensers baited with different doses of cuelure and methyl eugenol and numbers of flies trapped were compared. B. dorsalis has shown an increased response with increase in quantity of methyl eugenol both in lab and field studies. In EAG study, B. curcurbitae response in mV was increased as the cuelure dosage was increased up to 2 g whereas in field, the response was increased up to 1 g and reduced as the dosage further increased to 3 g. These studies showed that 1 g of cuelure and 2 g of methyl eugenol impregnated on wooden block dispensers attract and trap h...
The In vitro evaluation of three mycoinsecticides resulted that all tested fungi (Beauveria bassi... more The In vitro evaluation of three mycoinsecticides resulted that all tested fungi (Beauveria bassiana, Metarhizium anisopliae and Verticilium lecanii) produced toxic effect against A.b. biguttula. Among the three different formulation (crude, oil and granular) tested, oil formulation of M. anisopliae + coconut oil was effective compared to both crude and granular formulations.
Chromolaena odorata (L.) King and Robinson, a plant of Neotropical origin is Considered as a seri... more Chromolaena odorata (L.) King and Robinson, a plant of Neotropical origin is Considered as a serious weed of plantation crops,forests and grazing lands of South Asian and African countries, including India (Holms et al ., 1977). Field releases of the exotic host-specific biological control agent Pareuchaetes pseudoinsulata Rego Barros (Lepidoptera : Arctiidae) in different parts of South India, resulted in only localised defoliation (Jayanth and Ganga Visalakshy, 1993), necessitating manual and chemical methods even in areas where the insects were released. A study on the effect of herbicides on the insect was made under laboratory conditions, to see if both can be integrated.
The water hyacinth weevil, Neochetina eichhorniae, is an effective biological control agent of th... more The water hyacinth weevil, Neochetina eichhorniae, is an effective biological control agent of the aquatic weed Eichorniae crassipes. The adults under field conditions have degenerated indirect flight muscles that explains their inability to fly. A study on the factors initiating flight muscle development in adults was carried out. Among the various abiotic factors studied, density of weevils per plant and
Zygogramma bicolorata Pallister (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae), a biological control agent of Parthe... more Zygogramma bicolorata Pallister (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae), a biological control agent of Parthenium hysterophorus L. (Asteraceae), was feeding on leaves of Helianthus annuus in India, raising concerns of its host range. Based on the age grading technique, it was shown that the ...
Forty-five days old adults of Ceutorhynchus portulacae Marshall could survive up to 55 days, hidi... more Forty-five days old adults of Ceutorhynchus portulacae Marshall could survive up to 55 days, hiding In cracks and crevices in soil which reflects their survival capacity in the absence of food when Portulaca oleracea was completely removed by mechanical or chemical means and can be a probable candidate for the biological control of this deadly weed.
Detailed studies on the oviposition behaviour of H. antonii on different types of guava Psidium g... more Detailed studies on the oviposition behaviour of H. antonii on different types of guava Psidium guajava fruit from April to December that corresponds from fruiting to harvesting period was carried out in 2015.A shift in the egg laying pattern in relation to availability of fruits of different types were recorded during the season. Maximum number of eggs /fruit was recorded on unmatured scabby cracked fruits in the initial season of fruiting which shifted to ripe scabby fruits with the advancement of season. However data analysis on the egg laying for the entire season recorded significantly more number of eggs /fruit on un matured scabby cracked fruits. Co- relation between the availability of fruit type and number of eggs resulted in a positive linear curve with R2 value = 0.97 indicating that unmatured scabby and cracked fruits contain more eggs than other types of fruits screened.
Augmentative releases of newly emerged larvae of Bactra venosana, offsetting the impact of egg p... more Augmentative releases of newly emerged larvae of Bactra venosana, offsetting the impact of egg parasitoids was recommended for suppression of the weed Cyperus rorundur. This necessitated development of a mass rearing technique for large scale field releases. The present paper reports of an artificial diet developed for mass multiplication of R. venasana larvae.
Antagonistic effect of an entomopathogenic fungus Metarhizium anisopliae was evaluated against pl... more Antagonistic effect of an entomopathogenic fungus Metarhizium anisopliae was evaluated against plant pathogens Colletotrichum gloeosporioides, Pestalotia mangeferae and Botrydipliodia theobromae causing anthracnose, leaf blight, fruit rot and fruit tip rot on mango. Results indicated M. anisopliae inhibited the growth of C. gloeosporioides and P. mangiferae, where as B. theobromae was not inhibited.
The perennial compositae plant Chromolaena odorala (L.) R.M. King and H. Robinson, native to West... more The perennial compositae plant Chromolaena odorala (L.) R.M. King and H. Robinson, native to West Indies and South America, is a serious weed of plantation crops in southern Asia including India and Western Africa, (Holm et al., 1977; Bennett and Rao, 1968). Pareuchaetes pseudoinsulata Rego Barros (Lepidoptera: Arctiidae), detennined initially as Ammalo insulala (Walker). Is one of the natural enemies recommended for introduction into India and other countries (Bennet and Crutwell, 1973). Introduction of this insect from Sri Lanka in 1985 has resulted in successful establishment in Kerala (Joy el al., 1985).
Potential of Dolichogenidea stantoni (Ashmead) as a biocontrol agent for the melon borer Diaphani... more Potential of Dolichogenidea stantoni (Ashmead) as a biocontrol agent for the melon borer Diaphania indica (Saunders) was investigated during 2014-15 at field level. Influence of abiotic and biotic factors on the population dynamics of D. indica indicted that it was positively correlated with morning relative humidity and rainfall and was negatively correlated with evaporation, parasitism by parasitoids D. stantoni and Goniozus sensorius . Both abiotic and biotic factors collectively contributed 73.7 per cent to the variation in the D. indica population, in which 62.70 per cent of the fluctuation could be predicted by parasitism by D. stantoni alone indicating that parasitism by D. stantoni plays a major role in regulating the population of D. indica.
The melon borer, Diaphania indica (Saunders) (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae), is a serious pest of tropi... more The melon borer, Diaphania indica (Saunders) (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae), is a serious pest of tropical and subtropical cucurbitaceous vegetables. A suitable artificial diet is desirable for producing uniform insects for commercial purposes or research. Four new artificial diets (D-1, D-2, D-3 and D-4) and bitter gourd, the natural host plant of D. indica, were used for rearing D. indica, and the life parameters were compared. The results indicated that insects could complete a full life cycle after 3 generations, only when the larvae were fed bitter gourd or the diet D-1.The new artificial diet, D-1 was formulated based on bitter gourd leaves, Momordica charantia (L.) and chick pea, Cicer arietinum L. Developmental parameters like egg hatching, larval duration and longevity of the adult reared on the D-1 artificial diet were found to be significantly improved relative to the other three diets (D-2, D-3 and D-4), but were not significantly better than those reared on the host-plant bit...
Diaphania indica (Saunders) is a pyralid moth that causes damage to several cucurbit crops all ov... more Diaphania indica (Saunders) is a pyralid moth that causes damage to several cucurbit crops all over the world. Dolichogenidea stantoni (Ashmead) is a gregarious endoparasitoid of D. indica larva. We hypothesized that the degree of parasitism and reproductive success of D. stantoni is affected by the host plant of D. indica. Four host plants were used to determine the success of parasitism by D. stantoni. Choice and non-choice tests showed that D. stantoni is able to parasitize D. indica larvae on the all the four host plants. However, bottle gourd and cucumber had a lower percent of parasitism than bitter gourd and ridge gourd. Our findings revealed that the rate of parasitism and reproductive success of D. stantoni is affected by the host plant of D. indica.
The tea mosquito bug, Helopeltis antonii Signoret, is an economically important pest of guava in ... more The tea mosquito bug, Helopeltis antonii Signoret, is an economically important pest of guava in recent years causing significant reduction in yield and marketable fruits. An entomopathogen, Beauveria bassiana, was isolated from the adult bug infesting guava from KVK, IIHR, Hirehalli (Tumkur). This is the first report of B. bassiana infecting H. antonii . Further field studies on the efficacy of this pathogen againdt H.antonii on guava are suggested.
Laboratory and field studies were conducted to evaluate responses of melon flies, Bactrocera cucu... more Laboratory and field studies were conducted to evaluate responses of melon flies, Bactrocera cucurbitae and Oriental fruit flies, B. dorsalis to different doses (0.5 g, 1 g, 2 g and 3 g) of para-pheromones Cuelure and Methyl eugenol respectively. Electroantennogram (EAG) response was recorded in mV with male antennae of B. curcurbitae and B. dorsalis whereas field evaluation was carried out under farmers’ field condition with dispensers baited with different doses of cuelure and methyl eugenol and numbers of flies trapped were compared. B. dorsalis has shown an increased response with increase in quantity of methyl eugenol both in lab and field studies. In EAG study, B. curcurbitae response in mV was increased as the cuelure dosage was increased up to 2 g whereas in field, the response was increased up to 1 g and reduced as the dosage further increased to 3 g. These studies showed that 1 g of cuelure and 2 g of methyl eugenol impregnated on wooden block dispensers attract and trap h...
The In vitro evaluation of three mycoinsecticides resulted that all tested fungi (Beauveria bassi... more The In vitro evaluation of three mycoinsecticides resulted that all tested fungi (Beauveria bassiana, Metarhizium anisopliae and Verticilium lecanii) produced toxic effect against A.b. biguttula. Among the three different formulation (crude, oil and granular) tested, oil formulation of M. anisopliae + coconut oil was effective compared to both crude and granular formulations.
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