Biological study of jasmine leaf webworm, Palpita unionalis (Hubner) (Pyralidae: Lepidoptera)

Abstract

The leaf webworm, Palpita unionalis (Hubner) is one of the major pests of jasmine (Jasminum sambac). The biology of leaf webworm, P. unionalis, depicts an incubation period of 4.90 ± 0.73 days. The total larval and pupal periods are 19.50 ± 2.54 and 9.40 ± 1.17 days, respectively. The longevity of male and female moths is found to be 11.80 ± 1.68 and 7.20 ± 1.13 days, respectively. The recorded total life cycle for male and female moths is 45.62 ± 6.12 and 41.00 ± 5.57 days, respectively. It was also observed that the longevity of male moth is higher as compared to that of the female.