survival of solenopsis mealy bug, Phenacoccus solenopsis tinsley (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae) on cotton in relation to abiotic and biotic factors

the results indicated that mealy bug survival was higher under caged conditions, and the rate of decline of mealy bug population was also quite slow. the ambient conditions of temperature and relative humidity did not seem to have much effect on mealy bug population. However, sharp reductions in mealy bug populations were observed after heavy rains. It signified the role of heavy rains in suppressing mealy bug population. Among the biotic factors, the mealy bug parasitoid, Aenasius bambawalei Hayat, was found to be active on mealy bug colonies through out the observation period (i.e. July to October) and caused on an average 32.6, 42.4, 6.6 and 16 per cent reduction in the mealy bug population during July, August, september and October, respectively, when observed after 20 days of release of crawlers.