Development and reproduction of Maruca testulalis on an artificial diet
Author of the article:
Author's Workplace：
Key Words：legume pod borer, artificial diet, growth and development, fecundity
Abstract： Development and reproduction of the legume pod borer, Maruca testulalis Geyer, on an artificial diet were investigated using natural cowpea flowers and pods as the control. There was no significant difference in total larval development duration between artificialdiet group and control group. The survival of the first and second instar larvae fed on artificialdiet was lower than the control, but after third instar stage, its survival was higher than the control. The artificialdiet group had emergence rate of 96.72% and 96.47% in the first and third generation, respectively, which was slightly but significantly higher than that of the control group (94.41%). Ovipositing substrates had no significant effect on fecundity, but egg duraiton was shorter on the cowpea leaf than on filter paper and flannel, and hatching rate was higher than the later two. These results suggested that the artificialdiet could also provide enough nutritional for growth and development of legume pod borer.