Hiding Sites, Pre‐Oviposition Aggregation and Oviposition Behaviour of the Mango Mealybug, Drosicha mangiferae (Stebbing, 1903), Under Field Conditions

Le résumé fourni par la source

The present investigation was conducted during 2024–2025 and 2025–2026 in the mango block of the College Orchard, Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, Punjab, India, to study the oviposition sites and reproductive behaviour of the mango mealybug, Drosicha mangiferae (Stebbing, 1903), under field conditions. Gravid females descended from mango trees during late March to mid‐April and aggregated around the tree basin prior to oviposition. Oviposition commenced from the end of April and continued up to the third week of May. Most females deposited eggs in ovisacs at a depth of 10–15 cm below the soil surface near the root zone. In addition, oviposition was also observed in alternative sheltered microhabitats, including cracks and crevices of nearby walls, beneath loose bark and spaces between tree trunks. Maximum number of gravid females associated with oviposition sites was recorded in soil crevices near the tree trunk (18.6 ± 1.24 females/tree), followed by leaf debris around the root zone (15.6 ± 1.03 females/tree) and beneath nearby walls of the orchard (11.8 ± 0.87 females/tree). Each ovisac contained 109–215 eggs, with a mean fecundity of 156.40 ± 35.05 eggs per female ( n = 20). Following oviposition, females died near the egg‐laying sites, while the eggs remained in diapause until December. The present study documents additional oviposition microhabitats of D. mangiferae , including wall crevices and spaces between tree trunks, and highlights the potential ecological importance of concealed microhabitats in egg survival and seasonal persistence.

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