Seasonal dynamics of major insect pests of cucumber

To monitor the seasonal dynamics of insect pests on cucumber, the incidence of pests viz., Bemisia tabaci, Amrasca biguttula biguttula and Aulacophora foveicollis were recorded on a weekly basis, along with that of Bactrocera cucurbitae through a pheromone trap. The results revealed that the incidence of B. tabaci and A. foveicollis initiated during the 34^th SMW and A. biguttula biguttula during the 35^th SMW, whereas the appearance of B. cucurbitae occurred during the 31^st SMW. The peak incidence of B. tabaci, A. biguttula biguttula and A. foveicollis was observed during the 39^th SMW, while the peak of B. cucurbitae was during the 31^st SMW. All the weather parameters considered (minimum temperature, maximum temperature, minimum and maximum relative humidity) were more or less influencing the incidence. The regression model developed individually for each insect showed that all the weather parameters influence the incidence to an extent of 18, 35, 53 and 74% for B. tabaci, A. biguttula biguttula, A. foveicollis and B. cucurbitae, respectively.