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Timing of releases of the parasitoid Habrobracon hebetor and numbers needed in augmentative biological control against the millet head miner Heliocheilus albipunctella

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Abstract

Heliocheilus albipunctella de Joannis (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) is one of the major insect pests of pearl millet in the Sahel. The native parasitoid, Habrobracon hebetor Say (Hymenoptera: Braconidae), is currently being promoted for augmentative biological control of the pest in the Sahel. The current study was carried out to identify the right time for releases of the parasitoid using either pearl millet growing stage, or pest occurrence as reference, and to determine the optimal number of parasitoids needed to cover a given area. Our results indicate that release of parasitoids at the panicle emergence stage or six weeks after first sight of eggs of H. albipunctella lead to highest parasitism of H. albipunctella larvae by H. hebetor. The dose of 800 parasitoids for a distance of 3 km radius was enough for controlling H. albipunctella. The implications of the results are discussed toward cost effective and practical recommendation adapted to the Sahelian conditions.

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Acknowledgements

Funding for this research was provided by the United States Agency for International Development under Cooperative Agreement No. AID-OAA-A-13-00047 with the Kansas State University Feed the Future Collaborative Research on Sorghum and Millet Innovation Lab (SMIL). The project was implemented by ICRISAT and partner institutions (University Dan Dicko Dankoulo of Maradi, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University) as part of the CGIAR research Program on Dryland Cereals. The authors are thankful to Dr. Jaspreet Sidhu for her assistance in early stage of statistical analysis and to Nassirou Saidou, Laouali Karimoune, Mayaki Gaya, Souleymane Mamane, for their contribution in data collection. The authors are also grateful to farmers who graciously allow collecting data in their millet fields.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institut National de la Recherche Agronomiques du Niger (INRAN), CERRA de Maradi, BP 240, Maradi, Niger

    Laouali Amadou

  2. International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), BP 12404, Niamey, Niger

    Laouali Amadou & Malick N. Ba

  3. Université Dan Dicko Dankoulodo de Maradi, BP 465, Maradi, Niger

    Ibrahim Baoua

  4. Virginia Tech, 526 Price Fork Road, Blacksburg, VA, 24061-0378, USA

    Rangaswamy Muniappan

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  1. Laouali Amadou
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  2. Malick N. Ba
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Correspondence to Malick N. Ba.

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Amadou, L., Ba, M.N., Baoua, I. et al. Timing of releases of the parasitoid Habrobracon hebetor and numbers needed in augmentative biological control against the millet head miner Heliocheilus albipunctella. BioControl 64, 573–581 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10526-019-09960-2

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