Environmental & Physical Sciences

Research Papers/Topics in Environmental & Physical Sciences

Spatial distribution of Diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella L. (Lepidoptera: Plutellidae), at the field and the regional level in Ethiopia

Abstract: Pheromone trap catches were used to study the spatial distribution of Diamondback moth (DBM), Plutella xylostella L., at both single field and regional levels. At the field level, the DBM population tended to remain within the cabbage field. At the regional level, DBM captures were highly influenced by geographic location and cropping systems. In highland areas, daily maximum temperatures positively influenced the aggregation index, whereas in the lowland areas, rainfall had a nega...

Cross Mating Studies among Five Fruit Fly Parasitoid Populations: Potential Biological Control Implications for Tephritid Pests

Abstract: The reproductive compatibility between four different species/populations of the tephritid parasitoid Psyttalia (Walker) species from Kenya and individuals of the morphologically identical Psyttalia concolor (Sze´pligeti) (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) from a laboratory culture in Italy used in augmentative biological control of olive fly, Bactrocera oleae (Gmelin) (Diptera: Tephritidae) was assessed through cross mating tests using single-pair and group mating methods. Reciprocal cros...

Importance of Plant Physical Cues in Host Acceptance for Oviposition by Busseola Fusca

Abstract: Plant and surrogate stems exhibiting specific combinations of physical cues were used to determine which plant-related stimuli influence the oviposition of Busseola fusca (Fuller) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae). The number of eggs and egg batches laid per female increased with an increase in diameter of both natural and artificial stems. Direct observations of the oviposition behaviour (walking, antennating, and sweeping with the ovipositor) indicated that the female moths preferred ovip...

Comparison of five Allopatric Fruit Fly Parasitoid Populations (Psyttalia species) (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) from Coffee Fields using Morphometric and Molecular Methods

Abstract: Morphometric studies of five allopatric parasitoid populations (genus Psyttalia Walker) from coffee plantations in Cameroon (Nkolbisson), Ghana (Tafo) and Kenya (Rurima, Ruiru and Shimba Hills) and one non-coffee population (from Muhaka, Kenya) were compared with individuals of Psyttalia concolor (Sze´pligeti), a species released in several biological control programmes in the Mediterranean Region since the 20th Century. Analyses of wing vein measurements showed the second submarg...

Is quality more important than quantity? Insect behavioural responses to changes in a volatile blend after Stemborer Oviposition on an African grass

Abstract: Plants subjected to insect attack usually increase volatile emission which attracts natural enemies and repels further herbivore colonization. Less is known about the capacity of herbivores to suppress volatiles and the multitrophic consequences thereof. In our study, the African forage grass, Brachiaria brizantha, was exposed to ovipositing spotted stemborer, Chilo partellus, moths. A marked reduction in emission of the main volatile, (Z)-3-hexenyl acetate (Z3HA),occurred followin...

Flight and Oviposition Behaviour of the African Stem borer, Busseola Fusca , on Various Host Plant Species

Abstract: The African stem borer, Busseola fusca (Fuller) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), is an important pest of maize and sorghum in sub-Saharan Africa. As in many other lepidopteran insects, the ability of B. fusca to recognize and colonize a variety of plants is based on the interaction between its sensory systems and the physical and chemical characteristics of its immediate environment. In this study, we tried to identify the behavioural steps of B. fusca leading to host selection and ovipos...

Effects of Nitrogen and Potassium Combinations on Yields and Infestations of Maize by Busseola fusca (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) in the Humid Forest of Cameroon

Abstract: Field trials were set up in the humid forest zone of Cameroon to investigate the effects of combinations of different rates of nitrogen (N) (0, 60, and 120 kg N ha 1) and potassium (K) (0, 80, and 160 kg K ha 1) applied to the soil on the incidence and damage of the noctuid stemborer Busseola fusca (Fuller), and on maize, Zea mays L., yield. Each N/K combination had an insecticide control to assess yield losses due to borers. In contrast to N, K had no effect on plant growth and bo...

Desmodium Species and Associated Biochemical Traits for Controlling Striga species: Present and Future Prospects

Abstract: We discovered serendipitously a new and highly effective intervention against Striga spp., including Striga hermonthica (African witchweed), in cereals, which involves intercropping with cattle fodder legumes, Desmodium spp., including D. uncinatum. Although soil shading and additional nitrogen made some contribution to the reduction of S. hermonthica infestation, an allelopathic mechanism associated with the intercrop was a major factor. Root exudates of D. uncinatum contain novel...

Resource allocation and bionomics of indigenous and exotic Cotesia (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) species reared on Sesamia calamistis

Abstract: The braconid larval parasitoids Cotesia chilonis (Matsumura), C. flavipes Cameron and a strain of Cotesia sesamiae (Cameron) from coastal Kenya, reared at the International Centre of Insect Ecology and Physiology, were introduced at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture in the Republic of Benin for suitability testing on West African stemborers prior to release. C. chilonis was originally collected in Japan while C. flavipes was imported into Kenya from Pakistan. The ...

Effects of Bio-pesticides on Eretmocerus warrae (Hym., Aphelinidae), a Parasitoid of Bemisia Tabaci (Hom., Aleyrodidae)

Abstract: The sweet potato whitefly Bemisia tabaci (WF) can be controlled by two commercial neem products, NeemAzal-T/S (1% azadirachtin) for foliar application, and NeemAzal-U (17% azadirachtin) for soil application, alongwith two biorational products of microbial origin, Abamectin (avermectin) and Success (spinosad). Side effects of these products were tested in a laboratory bioassay against a native aphelinid, Eretmocerus warrae (EW). Eggs and early larval instars of the parasitoid, commo...

Role of Entomopathogenic Fungi in the Control of Tetranychus Evansi and Tetranychus Urticae (Acari: Tetranychidae), Pests of Horticultural Crops

Abstract: The spider mites Tetranychus urticae Koch and Tetranychus evansi Baker and Pritchard are important pests of horticultural crops. They are infected by entomopathogenic fungi naturally or experimentally. Fungal pathogens known to cause high infection in spider mite populations belong to the order Entomophthorales and include Neozygites spp. Studies are being carried out to develop some of these fungi as mycoacaricides, as standalone control measures in an inundative strategy to repla...

Host–parasitoid community model and its potential application in biological control of cereal stemborers in Kenya

Abstract: A two-host–two-parasitoid model was constructed to assess the effects of the introduced larval parasitoid, the braconid Cotesia flavipes, on its primary target host, the invasive crambid Chilo partellus, and on secondary host species, in inter-specific competition with Cotesia sesamiae, the main native parasitoid species of stemborers in Kenya. The model assumed that: (1) there was no host iscrimination by either parasitoid species; (2) Cotesia flavipes was the superior competito...

Distribution of chemo- and mechanoreceptors on the antennae and maxillae of Busseola fusca larvae

Abstract: The stem borer Busseola fusca (Fuller) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) is a major pest of maize,Zea mays L.,and sorghum,Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench (both Poaceae), in sub-Saharan Africa. Like in many other lepidopteran insects, the success of B. fusca in recognizing and colonizing a limited variety of plants is based on the interaction between its sensory systems and the physicochemical characteristics of its immediate environment. The sensilla on the maxillary galeae of B. fusca larvae a...

Laboratory Investigations on the Potential of Entomopathogenic Fungi for Biocontrol of Helicoverpa armigera (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) Larvae and Pupae

Abstract: The susceptibility of third instar Helicoverpa armigera to seven strains of three entomopathogenic fungal species, i.e. Metarhizium anisopliae, Beauveria bassiana and Paecilomyces fumosoroseus , was tested under laboratory conditions using the larval immersion method. High efficacies ranging from 68 to 100% corrected mortality were recorded with more profound effects in treatments with B. bassiana and P. fumosoroseus strains. The median lethal concentration (LC50) for L3 was 6.0 10...

Evaluation of the Impact of Diachasmimorpha longicaudata on Bactrocera Invadens and Five African Fruit Fly Species

Abstract: Diachasmimorpha longicaudata (Ashmead), a solitary koinobiont larval– prepupal endoparasitoid of fruit flies, was introduced into Kenya for testing and final release against the recently discovered invasive species, Bactrocera invadens Drew, Tsuruta and White in Africa. Laboratory experiments were conducted to determine host preference, host acceptability for oviposition and physiological suitability of B. invadens and five other indigenous tephritid fruit fly species – Ceratit...


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