Role of Parasitoid Species and Insecticides in Controlling Populations of Beet Moth in Sugar Beet Fields

Abstract

The beet moth, Scrobipalpa ocellatella Boyd. (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae) is one of the most important pests infesting sugar beet plants (Beta vulgaris L.: Chenopodiaceae). The first record of this insect pest in Egyptian sugar beet fields was by Willcocks (1922). Its larvae attack the succulent heart leaves causing puncture holes, longitudinal slits and short tunnels. These leaves where appeared crinkled, wilt and attached together with a silken web, whereas leaf mid-ribs infested by the last instars become soft, black and breakable (El-Sufty et al., 1987). The severe infestation by this pest led to higher weight reductions in roots (38 %) and sugar content (52%) than those caused by the beet fly, Pegomyia mixta Vill. or Cassida vittata L. (Abo-Saied, 1987). In such concern, Ahmadi et al. (2017) in Iran, stated that S. ocellatella is one of the most important pests of sugar beet that causes quantitative and quantitative yield loss in sugar roots and sugar content. Pest damage occurs in the central ARTICLE INFO ABSTRACT Article History