Simple Technique for Storing Diapausing Southwestern Corn Borers (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae)1

Abstract

Two experiments were conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of storing diapausing southwestern corn borer, Diatraea grandiosella (Dyar), larvae for up to 5 months at 10°C either in 30-ml plastic cups partially filled with 2% agar plus antimicrobial agents or in rearing cups containing the casein-wheat germ agar base diet in which the larva developed. In the first experiment, diapausing larvae were collected from corn stubble in the fall of the year and stored individually in cups with the 2% agar gel until the next spring. Seventy-eight percent of the larvae pupated when they were transferred to a 27°C environment for resumption of development. In the second experiment, larvae reared in the laboratory to the diapause stage were stored individually for 5 months in the same cups in which they were reared or in cups containing the 2% agar gel. Larvae survived equally well in either cup and resulted in 84% of the larvae developing to adults.