Dolichogenidea stantoni (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) a potential biocontrol agent for melon borer, Diaphania indica

Abstract

Potential of Dolichogenidea stantoni (Ashmead) as a biocontrol agent for the melon borer Diaphania indica (Saunders) was investigated during 2014-15 at field level. Influence of abiotic and biotic factors on the population dynamics of D. indicaindicted that it was positively correlated with morning relative humidity and rainfall and was negatively correlated with evaporation, parasitism by parasitoids D. stantoni and Goniozus sensorius. Both abiotic and biotic factors collectively contributed 73.7 per cent to the variation in the D. indica population, in which 62.70 per cent of the fluctuation could be predicted by parasitism by D. stantoni alone indicating that parasitism by D. stantoni plays a major role in regulating the population of D. indica.