Effect of Biological Characteristics of Two Species of Trichogramma on the Eggs of Lesser Date Moth, Batrachedra amydraula Treated with Lawsonia inermis Plant Extract

Abstract

This study aimed to evaluate the effects of treated and untreated Batrachedra amydraula Meyrick eggs with Lawsonia inermis (henna) on the parasitism rate, adult emergence rate, number of females, and adult longevity of two parasitoids, Trichogramma brassicae Bezdenko and Trichogramma. evanescens Westwood (Hymenoptera: Trichogrammatidae). The results obtained revealed that there were noticeable differences regarding the parasitism rate of the Trichogramma species. T. brassicae had the greatest parasitism rate (63%) on untreated B. amydraula eggs. However, when the eggs were treated with plant extract and water separately, the highest mortality rates caused by T. evanescens were 37.01 and 39.83%, by the two treatments, respectively. In addition, T. brassicae greatly outperformed the second species in terms of adult emergence rates when plant extract was not used to raise the larvae of B. amydraula 69.88%, followed by T. evanescens 65.02%. Compared to the other species, T. brassicae had a higher proportion of females. Additionally, T. brassicae lived longer compared to T. evanescens reaching 6.05 days. As far as we know, this is the first report investigating the ability of T. brasicae to biologically manage B. amydraula and reduce its population without the use of harmful pesticides. The results of the present study indicated that the use of Trichogramma brassicae and T. evanescens with Lawsonia inermis (henna) does not have a significant effect on the biological properties of Trichogramma when treated on B. amydraula.

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Keywords:

Batrachedra amydraula, date palm, Trichogramma, plant extract, Lawsonia inermis.