Biology and demographic statistics of fall armyworm fed on corn leaves at the laboratory

Abstract

Spodoptera frugiperda was a new invasive species in Indonesia in 2019, causing an outbreak in Indonesia’s corn-producing areas. Information on the life cycle and potency of population growth of S. frugiperda is required to strengthen local management. The biology and demographic statistics of S. frugiperda were studied in laboratory conditions. The larvae were collected from corn in Padang for mass rearing by feeding with corn leaves until adulthood. The eggs resulting from rearing were used as the cohort to observe biological and demographic statistics parameters. The development time of the egg was three days while larvae 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th were 1-3, 2-4, 2-4, 2-4, 2-5, and 4-6 days respectively. Prapupae and pupae were 1-2 and 7-9 days, while male and female adults were 2-11 and 6-15 days, respectively. Preoviposition, oviposition, and post-oviposition were each 3-9, 1-4, and 1-2 days. The fecundity reaches 182,78 eggs per female adult. The net reproductive rate of 50.43 females/female/generation, a gross reproductive rate of 269 individuals per generation, an intrinsic rate of increase of 0.2 day−1 with mean generation time (T) 37.34 days, and a doubling time (DT) requiring 2.31 days.