STUDIES ON THE QUALITATIVE VARIATIONS OF MULBERRY LEAF ON THE GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT OF SILKWORM, Bombyx mori (Linnaeus)
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Date
1989
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ACHARYA N.G. RANGA AGRICULTURAL UNIVERSITY, RAJENDRANAGAR, HYDERABAD
Abstract
Studies were conducted to know the influence of
feeding leaves of different maturities on growth and
development and cocoon characters of silkworm Bombyx
mori (Linnaeus) and to determine the waiting period
required for safe rearing of silkworms after spraying
the commonly used pesticides for mulberry plant
protection viz., Endosulfan 0.07 per cent and Mancozeb
0.25 per cent.
The silkworm larvae consumed 97 per cent of
total food in the final two instars. Growth parameters
like weight gain, length and head width were found to be
more when the larvae were fed with top tender · leaves as
compared to normal practice of feeding, middle matured
and bottom coarse leaves. The time taken ·by the larvae
for spinning the cocoon was the least in middle mature
and top tender leaf feedings whi~h were on par but
significantly superior to normal practice of feeding.
Larvae fed with top tender leaves recorded maximum
percentage of cocoons(70 per cent), cocoon weight
(1.0231 g), size (3.5933 em length and 5.9967 c·m girth)
and shell weight (0.3766 g). The indices, consumption
Index (CI), Growth Rate (GR) and Approximate
Digestibility (AD) showed a negative relationship withlarval age,food (ECI)
while Efficiency of conversion of ingested
and Efficiency of conversion of digested
food (ECD) to body substance were found to have a
positive relation upto IV instar. Top tender leaves
proved to be superior. in all the aforementioned
consumption and utilization indices.
Biochemical analysis of different aged leaves
revealed higher proteins in top tender leaves compared
to bottom coarse leaves, and it was found to have a
significant positive correlation with larval weight
gain, length, head width, percentage of cocoons formed,
girth of the cocoon and shell weight.
Mulberry plants when protected with Endosulfan
0.01 per cent and Man~o~eb 0.25 per cent required a
weighting period of 5 days and 2 days respectively for
safe rearing of silkworm without any adverse effect.
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Keywords
QUALITATIVE, VARIATIONS, MULBERRY, LEAF, GROWTH, DEVELOPMENT, SILKWORM,