Biological and Impact Assessment Studies on Campoletis chlorideae Uchida: A Promising Solitary Larval Endoparasitiod of Helicoverpa armigera (Hübner)

Abstract

We conducted laboratory and field studies to gain new understanding of biology and biocontrol potential of Campoletis chlorideae Uchida on Helicoverpa armigera (Hubner). Development time, adult longevity and fecundity of parasitoid were studied at 28±2°C and 70±10% RH. It was revealed that the parasitoid laid on an average 13.40±3.02 and 42.00±2.21 eggs after single mating and throughout its life span, respectively. The egg-larval and pupal period was 13.5±0.45 and 7.0±0.44 days, respectively. The emergence rate varied from 78.3 to 85.2%. The sex ratio of male: female in mated progeny was 1: 3.15±0.62. Adult longevity increased when provided with food source. Field release of 1-2 day old parasitoid with 15000 adults/ha (sex ratio 1:3) in chickpea showed encouraging results, wherein significant reduction in pest population and pod damage and increase in yield was obtained. The significant increase in parasitism after 7 and 14 days of parasitoid release was also recorded. However, the level of parasitism obtained in field was lower and therefore certain habitat manipulation like crop diversification and kairomonal interventions could be possibly explored. Furthermore, sustained efforts for evolving superior strains that can perform well in given set of environmental conditions are also required.