Biological Control of Castor Semilooper, Achaea janata L. in Castor Agroecosystems in India- A Review

Author: Puneet, Balbir Singh, Deepak Kumar* and Lokesh Yadav

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Abstract

Castor is an important oilseed crop grown all around the globe with a wide range of industrial applications. Castor though being a hardy crop is still attacked by a large number of pests but the dominant ones are the insects. Insects are found to attack almost every growth stage of castor crop and cause severe yield losses. Among the insect pests, castor semilooper, Achaea janata L. is one of the major defoliators causing severe damage to the crop ultimately leading to drastic reductions in yield. A number of natural enemies are reported to be present invariably associated with the field populations of castor semilooper in castor agroecosystems. Among them the braconid endoparasiotid, Microplitis maculipennis is a major regulator of castor semilooper larval populations. Trichogramma spp. causes parasitisation of the semilooper eggs to a fair extent. Predatory birds also contribute a lot as far as natural control of castor semilooper is concerned.

Keywords

Castor, Achaea janata, biological control, natural enemies.

Conclusion

Numerous studies have been conducted for biocontrol of A. janataes pecially in castor agroecosystems. The eggs of A. janata are parasitized naturally to a great extent by a number of egg-parasitoids, Trichogramma spp. being the major proportion of them. The larval populations are attacked by number of parasitoids, predators and insectivorous birds. Among the larval parasitoid, Microplitis maculipennisis found closely associated with A. janata larvae and cause substantial reductions in their population. Insectivorous birds are a major part of natural biocontrol as far as A. janata is concerned. Erection of bird perches in castor fields further enhanced their efficacy as predators of larval populations of castor semilooper. Biological control agents can be effective components of the pest management systems focussed on castor semilooper.

References

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How to cite this article

Puneet, Balbir Singh, Deepak Kumar and Lokesh Yadav (2022). Biological Control of Castor Semilooper, Achaea janata L. in Castor Agroecosystems in India- A Review. Biological Forum – An International Journal, 14(1): 1514-1520.