The present study was aimed at characterizing differences in mate acceptance and host plant recognition between Busseola fusca (Lep.: Noctuidae) reared for several generations under laboratory conditions and wild conspecifics, directly collected from maize stems in the field. The mating success was significantly higher in laboratory reared when compared with the wild B. fusca population. Oviposition on artificial stems was significantly higher for laboratory‐reared insects than for the wild ones. Moreover, unlike adults of the wild strain, laboratory‐reared B. fusca showed no preference to oviposit on surrogate stems impregnated with maize extracts. Long‐range attraction to the host plant was significantly lower for laboratory‐reared insects. Furthermore, the polymerase chain reaction‐restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR‐RFLP) analysis of mitochondrial DNA showed that the wild type and laboratory populations belonged to the same genetic strain, indicating that these differences between the populations were mainly phenotypic.

Two mitotypes of Busseola fusca (Fuller) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) named KI and KII, co‐exist in Kenya. Individuals of KII are more widely distributed than those of KI. The present study assessed whether this was due to differences in their reproductive potential and/or in their resistance to the braconid Cotesia sesamiae Cameron, which is the most common larval parasitoid of B. fusca in the region. Two populations of the parasitoid, one from the coastal and one from the inland regions of Kenya, which differ in their ability to develop in B. fusca, were tested. Virgin KII females started to call sooner during the night than KI females. Female fecundity and egg viability were significantly lower for the heterogamous than the homogamous crosses. Cotesia sesamiae from the inland produced larger progeny in KI than in KII host. Cotesia sesamiae from the coast did not develop in either host. Despite their long time co‐existence in the same geographical area, KII and KI conserved biological differences in terms of time of calling, fecundity, fertility and resistance against the larval parasitoid, C. sesamiae. This might explain the wider distribution of KII as compared to KI in Kenya.

Decidual large granular lymphocytes (DLGL) are the most abundant lymphoid cell type found in the first trimester maternal decidua. The function of DLGL remains controversial, although freshly isolated DLGL have been shown to exert a weak NK activity. We report here the phenotypic characterization of two DLGL subpopulations by immunofluorescence, using mAb against CD56, PEN5 as well as adhesion molecules potentially involved in cell-cell contact between DLGL and trophoblasts. DLGL are CD56bright and express the CD2, CD11a, CD18, CD38 and CD50 molecules, dimly the CD54 molecule, and poorly the CD102 and CD69 molecules. A strong expression of the polysialylated form of N-CAM (or CD56) was also observed on the surface of DLGL. Finally, 40% of CD56bright DLGL cells express the PEN5 epitope, which is selectively expressed on CD56dim cells NK in the peripheral blood. No other phenotypic difference was detected between the CD56brightPEN5+ and the CD56brightPEN5- DLGL populations. Our results show that DLGL are heterogeneous and suggest that the CD56brightPEN5+ DLGL subset belongs to the classical NK cell lineage.

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