1Wildlife Research and Conservation Trust, C/o Anupallavi, Chunagathara, Nilambu-679339, Kerala.
Forest Health Division, Kerala Forest Research Institute, Peechi-680 653, Kerala, India
*Corresponding authors E-mail: binduthelakkad2005@gmail.com
Online published on 24 January, 2012.
Present study is an attempt to quantify the severity of the viral epizootics occurred in natural population of the serious teak pest, the teak defoliator, Hyblaea puera (Cramer). During 2 years of systematic sampling it was found that the infected larvae were of later instars viz., third, fourth and fifth and infestation ranged from 50% to 89.7%. The differential Giemsa staining of the insect tissues in the laboratory revealed the presence of insect polyhedra.
