author(s)
M. Muthupandi, Bertrand Horne*, G. Evangelin, S. John William

abstract
The prey stage preference and the functional response of a pyrrhocorid predator, Antilochus conqueberti on Dysdercus cingulatus were studied in the laboratory along with the predator’s biology under controlled conditions. The functional response shown by the predator were of type II, since the number of prey consumed per predator initially rises quickly as the density of prey increases but then levels off with further increase in prey density. The stage preference experiments suggests that the third instars of Dystercus cingulatus were preferred by II and III instars of the predator, Antilochus conquebberti. The V instars of A. conqueberti fed minimum on all the stages of the pest D.rncingulatus. The biology of the predator were studied in the laboratory conditions and it was found that the eggs of Antilochus coqueberti were of light brown colour and laid in clusters which hatched into pale, fuscrus and testaceous nymphs. The first generation and second generation reared in the laboratory were found to have an incubation period of 8.00±0.00 days and 7.55±0.08 days respectively and the organism has to cross five instars to become an adult. The stadial period of first instar in the first and second generation ranged from 1.46±0.008 and 2.56±0.08 respectively, the second instar, 6.86±0.47 and 10.14±0.23, the third instar, 5.94±0.55 and 7.83±0.20, the fourth instar,rn7.80±0.243 and 4.79±0.18, the fifth instar, 9.13±0.64 and 7.00±0.30, the adult, 31.88±0.30 and 39.00±0.30. The sex ratio of the first generation and second generation was found to be 1:0.50.