Abstract
The tamarind weevil, Sitophilus linearis Herbst (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), is an important pest of tamarind and other Caesalpinioideae. Investigating its life history is important in the implementation of management strategy. Its life history was monitored daily to understand its developmental biology on tamarind seed following standard procedures under laboratory conditions of 24–30°C temperature, 60–70% relative humidity, and 12L : 12D photoperiod. The egg incubation period lasted 3.17 ± 0.07 days. A mated female of S. linearis laid an average of 165 ± 5.78 eggs during an oviposition period of 86.8 ± 2.47 days. There were four larval instars, with a total larval developmental period of 16 days. The pupal period lasted 8 days, and adult lived 108.5 ± 3.61 days. The overall growth ratio for the four instars was 1.33. There was a regular relationship and significant correlation (r=0.94) between the stages of larval development and head capsule width.
Highlights
Tamarind (Tamarindus indica L.), apart from being an important tree crop, is valued as fuelwood and ornamental [1], medicinal plant [2], and livestock feed [3]
This study reports the biology of this pest on tamarind seed in Nigeria
The mean incubation period of S. linearis eggs in this study under laboratory condition was 3.2 days which ranged between 3 and 4 days. This was in agreement with the earlier report that the incubation period of S. linearis is 3 days [7]
Summary
Tamarind (Tamarindus indica L.), apart from being an important tree crop, is valued as fuelwood and ornamental [1], medicinal plant [2], and livestock feed [3]. While some insect pests like Paraplisa gularis, Corcyra cephalonica, and Caryedon serratus [6] are known to infest fruits and seeds in the field and store, tamarind weevil, Sitophilus linearis, is a true most devastating seed pest [7, 8], which is capable of causing economic damage to the seeds of this plant. S. linearis is a congeneric species of Sitophilus granarius (L.), Sitophilus oryzae (L.), and Sitophilus zeamais (Motsch.), important insect pests of stored products whose developmental activities and feeding could cause qualitative and quantitative damage [9, 10]. The infestation of S. linearis begins from field after fruit ripening and damage continues when the fruits and seeds might have been harvested and stored. This study reports the biology of this pest on tamarind seed in Nigeria
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