Relative Susceptibility of Chickpea Varieties to Callosobruchus chinensis L. (Coleoptera: Bruchidae) and Appraisal of its Quantitative and Qualitative Losses

Abstract

| Pulse beetle, Callosobruchus chinensis L., is one of the primary pests of stored grain commodities and causes considerable quantitative and qualitative losses. This study was conducted to assess the relative susceptibility of some desi (Punjab-2008 and Thal-2006) and Kabuli (Punjab-2009 and CM-2008) varieties of chickpea, Cicer arietinum L. Quantitative and qualitative losses incurred by the infestation of C. chinensis were determined under laboratory storage conditions. Maximum grain weight loss was recorded in Thal-2006 (9.07%) after 120 days of infestation followed by CM-2008 (8.37%), while relatively lower weight loss (6.95%) was recorded in case of Punjab-2009. After 90 days of infestation, mean weight loss values for Thal-2006, CM-2008, Punjab-2008 and Punjab-2009 were recorded as 8.21, 5.95, 5.36 and 5.13%, respectively. Relatively lower values of grain weight loss were recorded at 60 and 30 days post-infestation. Minimum grain loss value (0.75%) was recorded in case of control (with no pest infestation). Highest and lowest moisture contents were recorded for Thal-2006 (16.32%) and Punjab-2009 (14.25%), respectively. Similarly, C. chinensis infestation caused highest and lowest grain germination reduction values for Thal-2006 (23.67%) and Punjab-2009 (10.32%), respectively recorded at 120-day post-treatment. Results of qualitative losses revealed that protein and ash contents reduced maximally up to 12.46 and 1.11% in CM-2008 variety, respectively. While minimum protein and ash content reductions were noted in Punjab-2008 variety (i.e., 8.58 and 0.75%), respectively. Similarly, highest reduction in crude fat and carbohydrate contents (i.e., 1.18 and 13.21%) were noted for Thal-2006 and CM-2008 varieties, respectively. While, Punjab-2008 and Punjab-2009 exhibited minimum reductions (i.e., 0.91 and 7.8%) in crude fat and carbohydrate contents, respectively. From overall study results, it is concluded that C. chinensis can result in considerable damage to stored chickpea grains. Moreover, rough surface chickpea varieties were comparatively less preferred by C. chinensis than smooth surface varieties which are found more susceptible to pest infestation.Novelty Statement | This study is novel as it demonstrates that pulse beetle Callosobruchus chinensis cause considerable qualitative and quantitaive damage to smooth surfaced chickpea varieties than rough surface chickpea varieties.