LIFE TABLE OF PROPYLEA JAPONICA THUNBERG (COLEOPTERA, COCCINELLIDAE) FED ON BEMISIA TABACI (GENNADIUS) (HOMOPTERA, ALEYRODIDAE) BIOTYPE B PREY

Bemisia tabaci (Gennadius) (Homoptera, Aleyrodidae) biotype B has become a major pest, causing serious losses to many agricultural crops worldwide. Propylea japonica Thunberg (Coleoptera, Coccinellidae) is an important polyphagous predator of different agricultural pests worldwide. In the present study, life table of P. japonica was determined with feeding on B. tabaci biotype B prey at the Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China during 2006-2007. P. japonica was able to develop and reach the adult stage with feeding on B. tabaci prey. Mean developmental duration of egg, L1, L2, L3, L4 and pupal stage was 3.6, 2.1, 3.0, 3.2, 3.4, 3.3 days for females and 3.4, 2.2, 2.9, 3.0, 3.4, 3.1 days for males, respectively. Mean total duration from egg to adult was 18.8 days for females and 18.0 days for males. Mortality recorded during embryonic, L1, L2, L3, L4 and pupal stage was 4.0, 3.2, 3.2, 2.4, 3.2 and 5.6%, respectively. The females (58.1 days) lived longer than the males (48.9 days). Fecundity was a mean total number of 542.0 eggs/female, ranging from 475-630 eggs. P. japonica has proved an efficient predator of B. tabaci during larval as well as adult stage and hence can be used in IPM program for management of the pest on different agricultural crops