Biological parameters of tomato leaf miner, Tuta absoluta (Meyrick) (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae) on three solanaceous host plants

Document Type : Original paper

Abstract

The tomato leafminer, Tuta absoluta (Meyrick) (Lepidoptera:Gelechiidae), is one of the Key pests of tomato. It may potentially damages 30-100 percent of the tomato yield under non controlled condition. Additionally it may damage to other solaneceous plants. In this study, we examined the development and population growth parameters of T. absoluta on three solanecous plants including two (AGRIA and FONTANA) potato cultivars and (HAN-RAN) tomato cultivar using cut leaves of the hosts under laboratory conditions. Insects were reared on the hosts for two generations before starting of the experiments. Eggs were placed in the petri dishes on the leaves of each host plants in 65 replications. The experiment carried out under laboratory conditions 25±5 ° C, 60±5% relative humidity and 16:8 h L:D photoperiod. Resulted data were analyzed using two sex age-stage life table program. Results showed that the eggs incubation period was shorter for the insects reared on AGRIA potato cultivar while the larval and pupal developmental time was shorter on FONTANA potato cultivar rather than other host. The highest and lowest mean generation time, finite rate of increase, gross reproduction rate, and intrinsic rate of increase were observed for insects fed onHAN-RAN tomatocultivar and AGRIA potato cultivar respectively, despite the mean comparison indicated no significant differences. Although the results showed that tomato was a more suitable host-plant and possessed better nutritional quality rather than potato, the potential population increases noticeably when T. absoluta fed on potato. Furthermore, T. absoluta may deserves a potential pest for the potato crop under appropriate climatic conditions and under temporospatial coincidence of the crop and pest.

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