Feeding Potential of Adult Menochilus sexmaculata and Coccinella septempunctata on Passionvine Mealybug, Planococcus minor Eggs and Nymphs

Mealybug infestation may occur within vegetative shoots or apexes and can be extremely difficult to detect.Basically, P. minor is phloem feeder that cause stunting growth of the plants along with defoliation Abstract | Passionvine mealybug, Planococcus minor has caused severe losses to many important crops and vegetables.However, many natural enemies, particularly predators have demonstrated key influence on its population regulation.Thus, this laboratory study was conducted to evaluate feeding potential of two coccinellid predators i.e., Menochilous sexmaculata and Coccinella septempunctata on eggs and nymphs of P. minor.Results confirmed that both species of coccinellid showed feeding potential against eggs and nymphs of P. minor.Comparatively, M. sexmaculata showed higher feeding than C. septempunctata on various immature stages of M. minor.Moreover, both the species showed relatively more preference on eggs of P. minor than nymphs.Therefore, both the species can be exploited in field conditions against P. minor to keep its populations below threshold level.