Citation:
Abstract:
Morphological studies (Total length from apical margin of clypeus to apex of elytra, width, body area and wing length) were carried out on the fourth larval instar, pupa and adult (male and female) of Henosepilachna elaterii (Rossi, 1794) (Coleoptera Coccinellidae) sampled from a Cucurbitaceae plant (Citrullus colocynthis Schrad.), which grow around the dam “Fountains of Gazelles” in Biskra (Algeria). The fourth instar larva and pupa measured 8.55 ± 0.20 mm and 2.56 ± 0.26 mm; 7.38 ± 0.36 mm and 4.81 ± 0.36 mm; length and width respectively. Adult beetles feeding on fresh leaves were hemi-spherical in shape and red ferruginous in color with 12 black spots on the elytra. Females measured 6.97 ± 0.25 mm in length and 5.37 ± 0.34 mm in width, while males were 6.17 ± 0.31 mm in length and 4.80 ± 0.37 mm in width. Duncan’s multiple range tests allowed us to classify specimens in increasing order of area as follows: 4th instar larvae 20.29 ± 0.15 mm2, adult male 26.41 ± 2.52 mm2, pupa 28.14±0.31 mm2 and adult female 31.73 ± 1.84 mm2. Moreover, the female wing was longer with a value of 10.07 ± 0.54 mm compared to the male, which recorded 8.72 ± 0.60 mm in length. Both adults and larva were serious pests of Citrullus colocynthis which resulted in skeletonisation of leaves.