author(s)
H Sunil Naik, KS Jagadeesh and BS Basavaraju

abstract
Studies on the biology and management of Maconellicoccus hirsutus on custard apple was conducted at the Department of Agricultural Entomology and Division of Horticulture, Zonal Agricultural Research Station (ZARS), Gandhi Krishi Vignana Kendra (GKVK), University of Agricultural Sciences, Bengaluru, Karnataka during 2014-15 and 2015-16. The result showed that female had three nymphal instars without any pupal stage, while male had three nymphal instars besides, pre-pupal and pupal stages. The developmental period from immature crawler to adult stage was greater for males (32.5 ± 4.63 days) compared to females (26±2.05 days). Females showed dynamic patterns of fecundity with the ranged from 356 to 444, with an average fecundity of 407.8±23.72 eggs/ovisac. Bisexual and parthenogenetic mode of reproduction was observed in case of M. hirsutus. Evaluation of insecticides for the management of M. hirsutus under field conditions revealed that the lowest larval population and highest per cent reduction was recorded in profenophos (0.05 %) and methyl parathion (0.05 %).