Incidence of two caterpillar species (Lepidoptera: Crambidae) and injuries caused by them in sweet basil grown in Seropédica County, RJ

Elen De L Aguiar-Menezes,Eurípedes B Menezes,Vinicius J Fernandes

doi:10.37486/2675-1305.ec03030

Elen De L Aguiar-Menezes, Eurípedes B Menezes + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.37486/2675-1305.ec03030

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Abstract

Ocimum basilicum L. (Lamiaceae) is one of the most popular herbs in the world, given its aromatic, medicinal and insecticidal properties. Its leaves are rich in essential oils, as well as the plant part with the highest economic value in this species. The aims of the current study are to identify the causative agent of injuries observed in sweet basil plants grown in Seropédica County, RJ (Brazil), as well as to feature both their feeding behavior and injuries caused by them. The herein investigated injuries were caused in sweet basil stems and leaves by caterpillars, which were collected with the leaves and grown in laboratory until they reached the adult stage. Two lepidopteran species belonging to family Crambidae were identified, namely: Hyalorista opalizalis (Guenée, 1854) and Pyrausta phoenicealis (Hübner, 1818); approximately 73% of adult individuals obtained in laboratory belonged to the first species. Caterpillars belonging to both species have caused similar injuries to O. basilicum plants. Injuries were featured by the sectioning of stems whose leaves were bundled with silk threads and formed a shelter, where caterpillars ate the leaf limb in. The current study also recorded O. basilicum plants used as hosts by P. phoenicealis insects, for the first time.

Highlights

Ocimum basilicum L. (Lamiaceae) is one of the most popular herbs in the world, given its aromatic, medicinal and insecticidal properties
One finds sweet basil (Ocimum basilicum L.), which is native to tropical and subtropical regions in Africa, central and southern American and Asia, it is grown in different countries in commercial and domestic gardens and its leaves are most used by the perfumery and cosmetics industries, aromatherapy products’ manufacturing or for medicinal and cooking purposes, a fact that features them as functional food (Shahrajabian et al 2020)
The aims of the present study were to record the incidence of caterpillars (Lepidoptera) attacking sweet basil (O. basilicum) plants grown in Seropédica County, RJ (Brazil), as well as to feature both their feeding behavior and injuries caused by them

Summary

Introduction

Ocimum basilicum L. (Lamiaceae) is one of the most popular herbs in the world, given its aromatic, medicinal and insecticidal properties. Regarding to Lepidoptera, Olson & Bidlack (1997) and Meek & Bidlack (2005) cited that defoliating caterpillar belonging to families Arctiidae, Geometridae and Noctuidae can cause severe damage to sweet basil; they did not identify the species.

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