Evaluation of resistance of six chickpea cultivars to the cowpea weevil, Callosobruchus maculatus (F.) (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae: Bruchinae) with age-stage, two-sex life table

Abstract

The cowpea weevil, Callosobruchus maculatus (F.), is an important insect of stored grains with a worldwide distribution. The effect of six chickpea cultivars namely Adel, Azad, Azkan, Hashem, Goksu, and Mansour on the life history, population growth, and reproduction parameters of C. maculatus was investigated in the laboratory at 30 ± 2 oC, 60 ± 5% RH and 12L:12D, using the age-stage, two-sex life table method. The cowpea weevils fed on Azkan, Azad, and Goksu cultivars have a longer total development period, whereas those fed on Adel cultivar, have shorter ones. The longer longevity occurs in the insects fed on Goksu, Azad, and Adel cultivars, respectively, whereas, shorter ones in Hashem cultivar. The cowpea weevil females fed on Azkan and Hashem cultivars have higher and lower fecundity, respectively. The intrinsic rate of natural increase (r) shows a more increase in the cowpea weevil populations in Adel than Azad cultivar. The highest and lowest age-specific fertilities occur in Azkan and Hashem, respectively. The C. maculatus female weight decreases and increases with feeding on the cultivars Azad and Adel, respectively. Based on our findings, Adel is a moderately susceptible and Azad and Hashem are resistant hosts for feeding C. maculatus. So, resistant cultivars may be a safe and clean method for stored crop preservation and storage pest control.