Growth, Development, and Survival of Certain Lepidoptera Fed Gossypol in the Diet1

Abstract

In laboratory feeding tests, effects of incorporating various concentrations of gossypol acetate into the artificial diet of larvae of the beet armyworm, Spodoptera exigua (Hübner); bollworm, Heliothis zea (Boddie); cabbage looper, Trichoplusia ni (Hübner); and salt-marsh caterpillar, Estigmene acrea (Drury), were determined. As little as a 0,1% concentration of gossypol in the diet reduced the weights of larvae significantly at 10 days of age and increased the number of days required for development from eggs to adult. The LD50 concentrations were 0.06% for the salt-marsh caterpillar, 0.35% for bollworms, 0.24% for beet armyworms, and 0.18% for cabbage loopers. The data suggest that gossypol might he incorporated in cotton plants as a practical control for certain lepidopterous insect pests.