Oviposition behavior and its relation to egg niche location in the yellowheaded borer,dirphya nigricornis

Abstract

The oviposition behavior of the yellowheaded borer,Dirphya nigricornis Olivier (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae), on coffee plants consists of the following phases: physical search of the tips by the tarsi and by vision, preparation of the chosen ovipositional site with the mandibles, and egg deposition and sealing. This period lasts 11.3 ± 1.8 min (all values ± S.E.), and is comprised of a search period of 3.0 ± 0.5 min, a gnawing period of 1.0 ± 0.2 min, an egg deposition period of 5.0 ± 0.1 min, and a sealing period of 2.0 ± 0.3 min. Within that time, the females are able to integrate various plant factors such as preferability of distal tip internodes, their green color and girths of 0.9 ± 0.1 cm, and the possibility of peeling the bark with the least force; these external factors, in addition to the length of the green primordial tissue, may account for the abundance and distribution of the egg niches on internode tips.