Cereal Grains and Oilseeds as Preferred Host Plants for the Khapra Beetle, Trogoderma Granarium Everts (Coleoptera: Dermestidae)

Ramadan, Marwa M.; Awadalla, Hagar S.; Abdel-Hady, Amira A. A.; Hashem, A. S.

doi:10.21608/jppp.2023.247200.1192

Cereal Grains and Oilseeds as Preferred Host Plants for the Khapra Beetle, Trogoderma Granarium Everts (Coleoptera: Dermestidae)

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

¹ Economic Entomology Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Mansoura University,

² Plant Protection Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Damietta University, Damietta, Egypt.

³ Stored Product Pests Research Department, Plant Protection Research Institute, Agricultural Research Center,

10.21608/jppp.2023.247200.1192

Abstract

The Khapra beetle, Trogoderma granarium Everts (Coleoptera: Dermestidae), is a significant insect pest of grains, cereals, and other stored goods. One of the effective ecological components influencing an insect performance is the host plant. The effects of four oil seed cultivars and five cereal grains were assessed for their nutritional indices and life table parameters of T. granarium under laboratory conditions. The developmental time of immature stages was shorter on the oat grain (33.1±0.76 days) and longer on the flax (63.1±1.69 days) cultivars than other cultivars. The highest survival rate of larvae and pupal stages were in the wheat and oats cultivars, and the lowest was in the coconut cultivar. The pre-oviposition period increased when reared on oilseeds, while it decreased after that in the following two periods (oviposition and post-oviposition) compared to other cereal grains. Fecundity, or the number of eggs produced, increased with upbringing on cereal grains and reached 51.4±0.96 eggs when reared on oats, while was 50.8±0.88 eggs when reared on wheat.. The results of this study demonstrated that certain commodities are more attractive than others to spread T. granarium, a finding that should be carefully considered in the international commerce of grains. Finding the anti-digestive components in host grain through research on the nutritional physiology of T. granarium on various cultivars can then help genetically design crops to become resistant to this important pest.

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