Biological and infestation studies on Araecerus fasciculatus DeGeer a new pest of Melia azadirach L. in India
2022
Kumar, Arvind | Ray, Aishwarya
Melia azedarach is a multipurpose tree of high medicinal properties and used for therapeutic purposes in ayurveda, siddha and unani system of Medicine. The infestation of Araecerus fasciculatus on M. azedarach fruits was recorded first time in the year 2000 during field survey in Uttarakhand, India. Maximum infestation was observed on fruits of M. azedarach collected from Udham Singh Nagar. Female beetles laid their eggs in the matured fruits making a hole in the pulp. The grub feeds on the pulp making gallery surrounding the seed kernel and do not feed on kernel or seed coat. After emergence, the adult beetle feeds on the fruit pulp only and come out through an exit hole of about 2 mm. The biology was studied in details; adult longevity was 22.00 (F) and 28.33 (M) days. The total life cycle of this beetle was completed in 50.91 (F) and 59.67 (M) days. Body size of male was shorter than the female but the legs of male were longer than female. Detailed morphometrics of different biological stages was also measured. Egg measured 0.898 mm, grub from 1ˢᵗ to fourth instar measured 2.13 mm, 3.49 mm, 4.20 mm and 4.80 mm, respectively. Subsequently, morphometrics of adult body part was also studied and color pictures of all the stages were provided.
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