M.Sc. (Nematology) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

H. armigera larvae are a key stage for pest management in conmercial irrigated cotton crops in South Africa. Effective survey methods for detecting larval populations in the field require an understanding of the biology of the larvae, particularly their feeding habits. Their feeding is central to the development of pest threshold levels for the implementation of integrated control programmes. This applies to routine surveys for the larvae as well as to the damage they cause. Biological characteristics of the larvae are described with the emphasis on the identification of the larval instars, which were consistently five in number in both field and laboratory populations. The distribution of H. armigera larvae on cotton plants in the field was examined, but was found to more or less random; had there been a clear preference for any height zones or compass direction this would have been an obvious avenue for improving the survey methods currently in use. Details of field and laboratory investigations of the selection of feeding sites by the larvae are given. The study confirmed a clear preference by the larvae for cotton buds, flowers and bolls (in the thesis collectively called "fruiting forms"), over leaves. There were indications that the larvae selected flowers more readily than buds or bolls. This "preference", however, is shown to be of no practical value for refining survey methods. Damage levels to cotton due to B. armigera are discussed. Both direct losses and indirect losses due to the abortion of fruiting forms are considered. These criteria are inadequate since they do not take into account the ability of cotton plants to compensate for these losses. It is concluded that this compensation by cotton plants should be taken into account in further studies of the pest status of B. armigera.

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This item was digitized as part of the Million Books Project led by Carnegie Mellon University and supported by grants from the National Science Foundation (NSF). Cornell University coordinated the participation of land-grant and agricultural libraries in providing historical agricultural information for the digitization project; the University of Arizona Libraries, the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, and the Office of Arid Lands Studies collaborated in the selection and provision of material for the digitization project.

The within-field spatial distribution of F₁, F₂, and F₃ pink bollworm (PBW) (Pectinophora gossypiella Saunders) generations were modeled with Taylor's power law (TPL), Iwao's patchiness regression (IPR), and the geostatistical semivariogram. Kriging interpolation was used to grid data for the generation of isarithmic maps. Distributional patterns and movements within a field are displayed in a time series of three maps depicting density across the field. The sampling protocol was replicated in eight commercial cotton fields in south-central Arizona during 1985 and 1986. Permanent sample stations were situated throughout the fields on a regular grid pattern. Samples were collected during the peak larval population and handled so as to maintain the integrity of site-specific samples (spatially identified by X,Y coordinates). TPL and IPR could not be used satisfactorily to model the F₁ generation. TPL fit the observed F₂ and F₃ data better than IPR. Both methods predicted the F₂ to be more highly aggregated than the F₃. For a given precision, optimum sample size increased when TPL and IPR model parameters were incorporated into sample size formulae relative to a formula which assumed random distribution. Ninety-five percent of the modeled PBW distributions were autocorrelated in 2-dimensional space and shown to conform to regionalized variable theory by the successful application of geostatistics. The semivariogram models are in conceptual agreement with traditional models and represent a worthy alternative to traditional modeling methodology. The semivariogram models have a large nugget effect proportion (average = 67%) which, in combination with low PBW density in commercial fields, limits the applicability of geostatistics in this system. Isarithmic maps showed that F₁ larvae are either localized near a field edge or generally scattered throughout the field. No consistent inter-generational dispersal pattern was identified. The use of systematic grid sampling is most advantageous (relative to random sampling) when density and the spatial dependence of samples is high, or many samples can be taken. Systematic sampling and kriging estimation yielded more precise estimates than random sampling and classical statistics, but the advantage was buffered by low PBW densities and large nugget effect.

The ability of Nabis alternatus Parshley to reduce tobacco budworm, Heliothis virescens (F.), populations was studied in the laboratory, greenhouse and field. Tests were conducted at different temperatures and with different larval instars of tobacco budworm to determine their effects on predatory efficiency. Both immature and adult N. alternatus consumed more first-instars than of either second- or third-instars, or of the egg stage. Temperature significantly affected the predatory capability of N. alternatus. All instars and the adult exhibited a higher rate of consumption at 30°C than at temperatures of 20, 25 and 35°C; adults consumed more tobacco budworm larvae and eggs at all temperatures than did any of the nymphal instars. There were no differences in survival of the different N. alternatus stages at the different temperatures but the average number of days required to complete each instar was affected. Each increase in the predator-to-prey ratio resulted in a reduced survival of the tobacco budworm population. Release rates of 2500, 3750 and 5000 adults per acre resulted in mortalities of 55, 77, and 87%, respectively. Both adult and third-instar N. alternatus exhibited the higher searching and consumptive capacities at different ratios of first-, second-, and third-instar tobacco budworm infestations. All N. alternatus fed more at the 1:4 (predator/prey) ratio than at ratios of 1:1, 1:2, or 1:3. Longevity of adult N. alternatus varied when provided with food substances of sugar solution, green bean, no food or cotton plants at the different temperatures. Survival was greatest when provided with sugar solution over any of the other substrates, and when held at cooler temperatures. Compatibility of N. alternatus with other controls was studied under both laboratory and field conditions. Average longevity in combination with treatments of Elcarᴿ, Bacillus thuringiensis, or fenvalerate was 6.7, 5.9, and 1.3 days, respectively. Compatibility with the biological insecticides was very good and the combinations reduced first-instar tobacco budworm infestations more than did either alone.

Eight "sterol-inhibiting" fungicides were evaluated for in vitro activity against Phymatotrichum omnivorum, and all proved to be very active (EC-50 values ranged from 0.001-0.038 ug/ml). Propiconazol received the major emphasis of this research, which included evaluations of phytotoxicity, soil persistance, resistance development, systemic translocation in cotton, and field evaluations for control of Phymatotrichum Root Rot of cotton. Although propiconazol significantly inhibited mycelial growth of P. omnivorum (in vitro) at concentrations as low as 0.0001 ug/ml within 96 hr, hyphal growth from sclerotia was not affected at 0.1 ug/ml within the same time frame. However, after 168 hr, or if sclerotia were pre-germinated for 120 hr before exposure, growth inhibition was comparable to that of the mycelial cultures. It was speculated that the greater level of sterols in sclerotia masked the inhibition of sterol synthesis by propiconazol until these sterol reserves were depleted. After 5 exposures to propiconazol over a 5 mo period, mycelial growth inhibition was the same as that of mycelium with no previous exposure. This indicated that resistance development should not be an immediate concern. Greenhouse evaluations of phytotoxicity and soil persistance of propiconazol determined that this fungicide can severely stunt cotton if planted into treated soil. Using stunting of seedlings as a bioassy of the persistance of propiconazol in non-sterilized soil, it was found that propiconazol was still active 3-5 mo after the initial soil treatment. Through the application of C-14 labeled propiconazol to the leaves of 5 and 8-wk old cotton plants, it was determined that no more than 0.23% of the applied radioactivity was translocated to the roots. However, based upon these percentages, root weights of the plants, and the amount of propiconazol applied to each plant during a field application, the theoretical concentration in the roots would be 30-700X the in vitro concentration necessary to inhibit mycelial growth of P. omnivorum (EC-50 = 0.003-0.006 ug/ml). Field evaluations of propiconazol were conducted in 1982 and 1983, while etaconazol, triadimefon, triadimenol, imazalil, and XE-779 were evaluated in 1983. These evaluations determined that propiconazol, etaconazol, and triadimenol showed promise for control of this disease, while imazalil, triadimefon, and XE-779 did not. . . . (Author's abstract exceeds stipulated maxium length. Discontinued here with permission of author.) UMI

Water relations in cotton plants infected with Phymatotrichum omnivorum were studied to determine the mechanism of wilt development. Relationships between leaf water and osmotic potentials, relative water contents, and diffusive resistances of leaves from diseased and waterstressed healthy plants were similar, indicating that wilting was not due to changes in leaf osmotic regulation. Rates of recovery from wilting, measured as increases in relative water content with time in both diseased and waterstressed healthy plants were identical. There was no significant difference in root dry weight of healthy and diseased plants, indicating that wilting is not a consequence of reduced root area. Resistance to water flow in roots and lower stems increased significantly over those of healthy plants as upper leaves of diseased plants began to wilt. However, resistance to water flow in petioles of diseased plants was unchanged. These results show that wilting in cotton plants is probably the consequence of increased resistance to water flow in roots. Results of a preliminary study indicate that a high-molecular-weight substance produced by the fungus in culture may cause blockage of xylem elements in roots and lower stems and contribute to the increased resistance to water flow.