نوع مقاله : مقاله پژوهشی
عنوان مقاله English
نویسندگان English
The date palm mite, Oligonychus afrasiaticus (McGregor), is a destructive pest of date palms in arid and semiarid regions. Understanding its biological performance on different host plants can help elucidate its population dynamics. This study investigated the effects of maize (Zea mays) and sorghum (Sorghum bicolor) on the biological characteristics and population parameters of O. afrasiaticus under laboratory conditions. For each host, 100 individuals were monitored daily in Petri dishes containing leaf discs, from the egg stage to adulthood and death, under controlled conditions. Adult reproductive characteristics were also recorded. Data were analyzed using the age-stage, two-sex life table theory and the paired bootstrap method. The results showed that the larval duration in both sexes and the second nymphal stage in females were longer on sorghum than on maize. Adult longevity did not differ significantly between hosts in either sex. The adult pre-oviposition period and total pre-oviposition period were longer on sorghum, whereas oviposition period and total fecundity were similar between hosts. The net reproductive rate (R₀) was significantly higher on sorghum (16.16) than on maize (9.60), while the intrinsic rate of increase (r) and finite rate of increase (λ) showed no significant differences. Mean generation time (T) was also longer on sorghum. Overall, sorghum provided more favorable conditions for the net reproductive performance of O. afrasiaticus over one generation, although this advantage was not accompanied by significant increases in the intrinsic rate of population increase or adult longevity.
کلیدواژهها English
