Abstract
A comparative study was made of the fertility, fecundity and longevity ofTrichogramma confusum Vigg. reared in the laboratory on eggs ofCorcyra cephalonica St., vs. a wild type population of the same species.
Laboratory reared females showed a significantly higher degree of sterility than wild-type females while sterility amongst males did not differ significantly. Under laboratory conditions, laboratory reared females lived longer than wild-type females but produced fewer progeny as indicated by life-table data suggesting that their “effective” life is shorter.
The high precentage of sterility amongst laboratory reared females should be taken into account when making inundative field releases. As size of the host may influence the fecundity and behaviour of laboratory rearedTrichogramma, the use of a suitable host which produces larger eggs would have to be considered in any mass-breeding programme.
Résumé
On a comparé la fertilité, la fécondité et la longévité deTrichogramma confusum Vigg. élevés sur des œufs deCorcyra cephalonica St. par rapport à une population sauvage de la même espèce. Les femelles d'élevage présentent une stérilité significativement plus élevée que les femelles sauvages alors que la stérilité des mâles est sensiblement la même. Au laboratoire les femelles d'élevage vivent plus longtemps que celles de la nature mais ont une descendance moindre d'après les données de la table de survie montrant que leur vie effective est plus courte. Le pourcentage élevé de stérilite constaté chez les femelles d'élevage doit être pris en considération pour les lâchers inondatifs dans les champs. Puisque la taille de l'hôte peut influencer la fécondité et le comportement desTrichogramma en élevage, l'utilisation d'un hôte produisant des œufs plus gros que ceux deCorcyra serait à considérer pour la production de masse.
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This research was financed by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research, New Delhi.
This is the same species as that referred to by the authors in their earlier papers asT. australicum Gir. After comparison of paratype material it has been renamed asT. confusum byViggiani (1976).
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Nagarkatti, S., Nagaraja, H. Experimental comparison of laboratory reared vs. wild-typeTrichogramma confusum [Hym.: Trichogrammatidae] I. Fertility, fecundity and longevity. Entomophaga 23, 129–136 (1978). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02371719
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02371719