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Article
Effects of photoperiod on boll weevil (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) development, survival, and reproduction
Environmental Entomology
  • Shoil M. Greenberg, United States Department of Agriculture
  • Thomas W. Sappington, Iowa State University
  • John J. Adamczyk, United States Department of Agriculture
  • T. X. Liu, Texas A & M University - College Station
  • M. Setamou, Texas A & M University - College Station
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
12-1-2008
DOI
10.1603/0046-225X-37.6.1396
Abstract

Effects of photoperiod on development, survival, feeding, and oviposition of boll weevils,Anthonomus grandis grandis Boheman, were assessed under five different photophases (24, 14, 12, 10, and 0 h) at a constant 27°C temperature and 65% RH in the laboratory. Analyses of our results detected positive relationships between photoperiod and puncturing (mean numbers of oviposition and feeding punctures per day), and oviposition (oviposition punctures/oviposition+feeding punctures) activities, and the proportion of squares attacked by boll weevil females. When boll weevil females developed in light:darkness cycles, they produced a significantly higher percentage of eggs developing to adulthood than those developed in 24-h light or dark conditions. In long photoperiod (24:0 and 14:10 h), the number of female progeny was significantly higher and their development time was significantly shorter than those developed in short photoperiod (0:24 and 10:14 h). Lifetime oviposition was significantly highest at 12- and 14-h photophase, lowest at 0- and 10-h photophase, and intermediate at 24 h of light. Life table calculations indicated that boll weevil populations developed in a photoperiod of 14:10 and 12:12 (L:D) h will increase an average of two-fold each generation (Ro) compared with boll weevils developed in 24:0- and 10:14-h photoperiods and 15-fold compared with those at 0:24 h. Knowledge of the photoperiod-dependent population growth potential is critical for understanding population dynamics to better develop sampling protocols and timing insecticide applications.

Comments

This article is from Environmental Entomology 37 (2008): 1396, doi:10.1603/0046-225X-37.6.1396

Rights
Works produced by employees of the U.S. Government as part of their official duties are not copyrighted within the U.S. The content of this document is not copyrighted.
Language
en
File Format
application/pdf
Citation Information
Shoil M. Greenberg, Thomas W. Sappington, John J. Adamczyk, T. X. Liu, et al.. "Effects of photoperiod on boll weevil (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) development, survival, and reproduction" Environmental Entomology Vol. 37 Iss. 6 (2008) p. 1396 - 1402
Available at: http://works.bepress.com/thomas_sappington/29/