Journal of Entomological Research

SCOPUSWeb of Science
  • Year: 2025
  • Volume: 49
  • Issue: 4

Impact of maize genotypes on growth and consumption patterns of Spodoptera frugiperda larvae under in vitro conditions

  • Author:
  • Sachin Yadav*, Rajendra Yadav1, Tejpal Tetarwal, S. Ramesh Babu, Hemant Swami
  • Total Page Count: 4
  • Page Number: 942 to 945

Department of Entomology, Rajasthan College of Agriculture, Maharana Pratap University of Agriculture and Technology, Udaipur - 313 001, Rajasthan, India

1Department of Entomology, C.P. College of Agriculture, Sardarkrushinagar Dantiwada Agricultural University, Sardarkrushinagar – 385 506, Gujarat, India

Abstract

Five locally available maize cultivars were evaluated under in vitro conditions against S. frugiperda for larval arrestment (developmental arrest), larval-pupal development, food assimilation, leaf trichome density, and plant damage-key parameters indicative of resistance. Larval arrestment and leaf consumption (defoliation) were significantly higher in PMC-6 and the local cultivar, with PMC-6 also exhibiting the highest larval weights on days 9 (0.035 g) and 12 (0.176 g). Mortality was most pronounced in HQPM-1, while pupation peaked in sweet corn. The larval period ranged from 21 to 23 days across genotypes, showing no significant variation. PMC-6 recorded the highest assimilated food and consumed leaf weight, indicating superior palatability. Trichome density varied significantly among cultivars, with sweet corn exhibiting the highest count (29.8 trichomes/mm2). These findings suggest that genotypic traits such as trichome density and nutritional profile play a critical role in modulating FAW larval performance and may inform future resistance breeding strategies.

Keywords

Cultivar variation, Food assimilation, Host plant resistance, In vitro, Kharif, Larval arrestment, Larval-pupal development, Maize, Spodoptera frugiperda, Trichome density, Zea mays