Host Plant Feeding and Ovipositional Preferences of Spodoptera frugiperda (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) under Laboratory Conditions

Abstract

In India, the invasive fall armyworm, Spodoptera frugiperda (J.E. Smith) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), has emerged as the most devastating pest of maize, Zea mays L., and is expanding its host range. In this study, we assessed its preference for feeding and oviposition in both choice and nonchoice bioassays including maize, sorghum, castor, cowpea, cotton, banana, and marigold as hosts. At 24 h after release in choice tests, the number of larvae was greatest on maize ears and lowest on cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) leaves among the host plants tested. In nonchoice tests, third-instar larvae that fed on maize leaves and ears had the shortest growth periods (2.05 and 2.2 d, respectively) and the longest on marigold (Tagetes erecta L.) flowers (5.2 d). In oviposition preference tests, maize was the most preferred host, with the greatest number of egg masses deposited in choice and nonchoice tests compared with other hosts. Thus, maize was the most preferred host for fall armyworm in our tests, but fall armyworm may also survive on plants other than maize during the nongrowing season, posing a risk to other economically important crops in its expanded range in India.