Indian meal moth, Plodia interpunctella (Hübner) (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae), is a polyphagous insect pest that causes serious damage to various food crops in storage. This study aimed to investigate the life-history and demographic parameters of P. interpunctella on 5 varieties of date palm fruits (Phoenix dactylifera L.), including Dayri, Estemaran, Fersi, Halavi, and Zahedi under laboratory conditions. Data were analyzed and compared using the age-stage, 2-sex life table. Plodia interpunctella completed its development on all date varieties. The shortest and longest pre-adult periods were recorded on Zahedi (38.47 days) and Estemaran (44.65 days) varieties, respectively. The net reproductive rates (R0) were 82.51, 59.05, 63.61, 102.27, and 114.86 offspring on Dayri, Estemaran, Fersi, Halavi, and Zahedi varieties, respectively. The intrinsic rate of increase (r) were 0.098, 0.085, 0.089, 0.109, and 0.113 day-1 on Dayri, Estemaran, Fersi, Halavi, and Zahedi varieties, respectively. The female fecundity ranged from 133.4 to 259.24 eggs on Estemaran and Zahedi varieties, respectively. The highest mean generation time (T) was obtained on Estemaran (47.984 days), and the lowest value of this parameter was obtained on Zahedi (41.722 days) variety. The results indicated that Zahedi and Halavi varieties were the susceptible hosts for P. interpunctella. In contrast, the Estemaran and Fersi were the most resistant varieties against P. interpunctella, which can be used for integrated management programs to decrease the damage of this pest.
Keywords: Indian meal moth; date fruit; demographic parameter; host-plant resistance; life history.
© The Author(s) 2023. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America.