The Biology, Parasitism, and Population Sampling of the Plum Curculio on Blueberry in North Carolina1

Abstract

Under field conditions, an average of 54.6 days was required for first-generation plum curculio, Conotrachclus nenuphar (Herbst), to complete development with blueberry as a host. The duration of life stages is reported. Adults reared on blueberries were smaller than those reared from peach but fecundity was not reduced. A second generation occurred on blueberries when fruits were available for oviposition when the first-generation females reached maturity. Diapause occurred in 40-75% of the first-generation females reared from blueberries, wild plum, and peach. It appeared that the occurrence of diapause was not influenced by host fruit. After the insects moved from hibernation quarters to the host plant, there was little movement from plant to plant within the field and some adults hibernated in ground cover in the field. Preliminary studies on mark, release, and recapture methods indicated that the technique was useful in determining density and movement of plum curculio within blueberry plantings. The only parasite recovered from field-collected larvae was Aliolus rufus Riley, which accounted for 2.9% parasitism. A. rufus and another species, A. curculionis Fitch. were reared from plum curculio infesting wild plum.