Effectiveness of four release doses of two parasitoids species, Trichogramma (Hymenoptera: Trichogrammatidae) in some biological aspects of the lesser date moth Batrachedra amydraula Meyricke (Cosmopteridae: Batrachedridae) on date palm trees in Basrah /Iraq.

Ghazwan FAISAL AL-SAEDI

doi:10.14720/aas.2025.121.3.21435

Authors

Ghazwan FAISAL AL-SAEDI Date Palm Research Center, University of Basrah / Iraq.

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.14720/aas.2025.121.3.21435

Keywords:

Lesser date moth, Trichogramma, date palm.

Abstract

Date palms are infested with various destructive insect pests, which cause major economic losses. One of these pests is the smaller date moth Batrachedra amydraula. The study aimed to examine the effectiveness of two different Trichogramma egg parasites (Trichogramma brassicae and T. evanescens) in the biological control of the lesser date moth B. amydraula. Each parasite type was examined at four different release doses (250, 500, 750, and 1000 parasites per tree). The findings revealed that all kinds of Trichogramma had a substantial effect, reaching 86.75% for a dose of 1000 T. evanescens parasitoids/tree. While the maximum rate of emergence of T. evanescens adults was at a dose of 1000 parasites/tree, which was much higher than T. brassicae . In addition, no statistically significant differences appeared between parasitoids in the average percentage of females to the parasite. The response of absolute doses of Trichogramma females to B. amydraula spawning sites was also evaluated, and the parasite's egg sites were determined according to tree height. The best parasitism rate was recorded for both Trichogramma species on trees whose height ranged from 1.5 m - 2 m, especially for the dose of 1000 parasites/tree .

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