Determination of Resistance of Five Turkish Chickpea Cultivars to the Cowpea Weevil, Callosobruchus maculatus (F.) (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae: Bruchinae), Using Age-Stage Two-Sex Life Table Analysis

Abstract

The cowpea weevil, Callosobruchus maculatus (F.), which causes serious losses in stored legumes, is one of the most important and widely distributed insect pest worldwide. This study was conducted to determine the some biological and life table parameters of C. maculatus on five different chickpea cultivars (Ak & ccedil;in-91, Dikba & scedil;, G & uuml;l & uuml;mser, Uzunlu-99, and Zuhal) using the age-stage, two-sex life table method under laboratory conditions of 27 degrees C, 70% RH, and 16:8 L: D. Thirty replicates were conducted for each cultivar using a single pair of <= 24-hour-old adults, and individuals were transferred to new seeds daily until the female died. The experiments ended after all adult females and males were dead. Uzunlu-99 had the longest total pre-adult period (29.25 days) and adult longevity (8.08 days), indicating that C. maculatus developed slowly on this cultivar, making it more resistant to the pest. Similarly, Ak & ccedil;in-91 also exhibited a long total pre-adult period (28.65 days) and low reproductive capacity (total fecundity, 56.73 eggs), placing it among the resistant cultivars. In contrast, G & uuml;l & uuml;mser and Dikba & scedil; cultivars stood out with their short pre-adult development times (24.82 and 26.88 days, respectively) and the highest total fecundity (68.80 and 78.11 eggs). The highest intrinsic rate of increase (0.134 day-1) was observed in the G & uuml;l & uuml;mser cultivar, along with a relatively high net reproductive rate (40.47 offspring/female), while the Zuhal cultivar had the highest net reproductive rate (42.11 offspring/female) and exhibited a higher intrinsic rate of increase (0.129 day-1) compared to some other cultivars. The results indicated that Ak & ccedil;in-91 and Uzunlu-99 cultivars were more resistant to C. maculatus, while G & uuml;l & uuml;mser, Dikba & scedil;, and Zuhal were more susceptible. These findings provide important data for the selection of resistant chickpea cultivars to be used in integrated pest management strategies against C. maculatus.