DEMOGRAFÍA DE BRÚQUIDOS (COLEOPTERA: BRUCHIDAE) ASOCIADOS CON VIGNA UNGUICULATA (L.) WALP (FABACEAE).

Bruchids feed primarily on legume seeds, which include some economically important crops such as the bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.), chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.), lentil (Lens culinaris Medik.) and tamarind (Tamarindus indica L.) among others. Whereas the first is the main source of protein in the human diet; Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp because of its nutritional properties could replace the bean, pests, in particular bruchids, are a major problem and cause considerable postharvest losses. For this reason, it is necessary to determine population parameters of Acanthoscelides obtectus (Say, 1831), Callosobruchus maculatus (Fabricius, 1775) from two different hosts and Zabrotes subfasciatus (Boheman, 1833) fed with V. unguiculata through a demographic study under controlled conditions. Population parameters were estimated with the cohort life table technique, the Log rank test (p ≤ 0. 05), reproductive rates, and confidence intervals with the non-parametric technique of overlapping intervals (p ≤ 0. 10) to compare instantaneous rate of population growth (rm), also called innate increment capacity. These parameters were estimated with the emergence of adults and reproductive rates. Callosobruchus maculatus from either of two hosts could cause serious problems when associated with V. unguiculata. Nevertheless, A. obtectus and Z. subfasciatus could be a problem, only if V. unguiculata is the only option in storage conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]