Impact of diets and environmental variables on the biology of Callosobruchus maculatus (F). (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae)

Abstract

Callosobruchus maculatus is a global and widely distributed grain pest. Chemical control has potential toxicity risks, and the present study aimed to estimate the repercussions of environmental variations and diet effects on C. maculatus biology. Four different sets of temperature and humidity exhibited a different influence on the development of C. maculatus both in natural and artificial diet patterns. The present data revealed that the population of C. maculatus was surviving better at 27.5 − 32.5 °C and 80–90%. The artificial diet based on vicilin and chitinases suppressed C. maculatus, as evidenced by delayed developmental times and reduced adult longevity (AL).

Keywords:

• Callosobruchus maculatus
• vicilin and chitinases
• environmental variables
• chickpea
• toxicity
• biology

Acknowledgment

The authors are grateful to Dr. Rizwan Munir for his ­statistical advice and Department of Zoology staff for their assistance during the experiments.

Author contributions

Conceptualization, B.R.; methodology, B.R. and I.Q.; software, I.Q. and I.R. validation, B.R.; formal analysis, B.R. and J.I.; investigation, I.Q. and I.R.; resources, J.I. and B.R.; data curation, I.Q. and I.R.; writing – original draft preparation, B.R.; writing-review and editing, B.R.; visualization, B.R.; supervision, B.R.; project administration, B.R.; funding acquisition, B.R.; All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

Disclosure statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Data availability statement

The data are included in the manuscript.

Additional information

Funding

We would like to thank the Pakistan Science Foundation (PSF), Islamabad, Pakistan for the financial support for this study.