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Biological Control of the Coconut Caterpillar Opisina Arenosella (Lepidoptera: Xylorictidae): Achievements and Prospects

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Biocontrol Potential and its Exploitation in Sustainable Agriculture

Abstract

As a serious defoliator of the coconut trees in India, Srilanka, Bangladesh and Myanmar, the blackheaded caterpillar pest of coconut, Opisina arenosella Walker (= Nephantis serinopa Meyrick), has attracted the attention of agricultural scientists right from the beginning of the present century. The pest in its larval stage causes serious damage to the plant, while the adult moth having a short life span is harmless. The first record of this pest in India was from Coimbatore in 1907 on Palmyra plants, while it was first reported on coconut palms from Bapatala, Andhra Pradesh in 1909 (Rao et al., 1948). Often the insect was found to occur in alarming numbers along the coastal belts where the plants are abundant. With increasing cultivation of the crop in unconventional areas, the pest has also been found to occur in new areas, including interior places.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Zoology, University of Calicut, Calicut, 673 635, Kerala, India

    M. Nasser & U. C. Abdurahiman

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  1. M. Nasser
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  2. U. C. Abdurahiman
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Directorate of Plant Protection, Quarantine and Storage, Faridabad, India

    R. K. Upadhyay

  2. University of Delhi, Delhi, India

    K. G. Mukerji  & B. P. Chamola  & 

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© 2001 Springer Science+Business Media New York

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Nasser, M., Abdurahiman, U.C. (2001). Biological Control of the Coconut Caterpillar Opisina Arenosella (Lepidoptera: Xylorictidae): Achievements and Prospects. In: Upadhyay, R.K., Mukerji, K.G., Chamola, B.P. (eds) Biocontrol Potential and its Exploitation in Sustainable Agriculture. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4615-1377-3_17

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4615-1377-3_17

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4613-5523-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4615-1377-3

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