22 Ara 2024 Pazar
Effect of fungal and bacterial diseases in different instar Muga Silkworm, Antheraea assamensis Helfer (Lepidoptera: Saturniidae) in different crop seasons
Abstract :The golden silk producer muga silkworm, Antheraea assamensis Helfer, is a multivoltine and polyphagous lepidopteron insect, endemic to North Easter part of India, especially in Assam. Due to out door nature of rearing,the young larvae expose to various rigours changing of environment during different rearing periods which often leads to the out break of diseases affecting in the crop production. Now a day’s flacherie and muscardine are the important diseases in muga silk industry which are economically loss the crop production.Broad spectrum insect pathogens have been used extensively as bio-pesticides for controlling of different insects and pathogens for biological management of the pests and diseases in different plantation crops. These biological agents have least injury to non-target organisms, although they are not at all safe to other beneficial economic insects of the ecosystems. Such biocontrol organisms i.e. Beauveria bassiana and Bacillus thuringiensis are used in tea gardens, rice field and other cereals and vegetable crops throughout the world. It was observed that these live materials severely affected on the golden silk producer mugasilkworm. A detail investigation on the pathological problems of the economic insect was carried out in different crop seasons to ascertain the mortality percentage due to affect of B. bassiana and B. thuringiensis in different muga rearing areas Assam. The results showed that maximum 70-80% infection recorded due to infection of B. bassiana in winter crop (December-January) as a results shortfall of dfls obtained for next commercial season. On the other hand, maximum 43% infection of B. thuringiensis was recorded in summer seed crop seasons
Antheraea assamensis, Beauveria bassiana, biopesticides, disease incidence, muscardine