Boll weevil feeding, reproductive potential, and survival were determined on 10 different cotton fruit phenology stages. Egg deposition and the number of feeding punctures were significantly affected by cotton fruit phenology stage. The highest number of eggs were recorded in squares 5-6 and 7-8 mm in diameter. Only a few eggs were oviposited in bolls more than 30 mm diameter and immediately before bloom ("candles"). Females did not lay eggs in 1.5-2.0 mm diameter "pinhead" squares. Boll weevil survival was highest on squares 7-8 or 9-10 mm in diameter (58.6-59.7%), and they did not survive in pinhead and matchhead squares, or bolls more than 30 mm in diameter. Development time was longest in bolls 15-20 and 20-30 mm in diameter (18.2-18.8 d). The growth index of boll weevil females was 2.8-fold higher when they developed in squares 7-8 or 9-10 mm in diameter than in bolls 20-30 mm.
Species 1: Coleoptera Curculionidae Anthonomus grandis grandis (boll weevil)
Keywords: feeding, oviposition
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