Biology of Chiloloba orientalis Author(s): S.M. Kumbhar, A.B. Mamlavya S.J. Patil and G.P. Bhawane Source: Journal of Insect Science, 12(127):1-15. 2012. Published By: Entomological Society of America DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1673/031.012.12701 URL: http://www.bioone.org/doi/full/10.1673/031.012.12701 BioOne (www.bioone.org) is a nonprofit, online aggregation of core research in the biological, ecological, and environmental sciences. BioOne provides a sustainable online platform for over 170 journals and books published by nonprofit societies, associations, museums, institutions, and presses. Your use of this PDF, the BioOne Web site, and all posted and associated content indicates your acceptance of BioOne’s Terms of Use, available at www.bioone.org/page/terms_of_use. Usage of BioOne content is strictly limited to personal, educational, and non-commercial use. Commercial inquiries or rights and permissions requests should be directed to the individual publisher as copyright holder. BioOne sees sustainable scholarly publishing as an inherently collaborative enterprise connecting authors, nonprofit publishers, academic institutions, research libraries, and research funders in the common goal of maximizing access to critical research. Journal of Insect Science: Vol. 12 | Article 127 Kumbhar et al. Biology of Chiloloba orientalis S.M. Kumbhara, A.B. Mamlayyab*, S.J. Patilc and G.P. Bhawaned Department of Zoology, Shivaji University, Kolhapur, Maharashtra, India Abstract This study, related to emergence of the cetoniid beetle, Chiloloba orientalis D and R (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Cetoniinae), was conducted annually from August to the middle of October from 2007 to 2010 in maize (Zea mays L. (Poales: Poaceae)), sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench), and grass (Hetropogon contortus (L.) P. Beauv. ex Roem. and Schult., Apluda mutica L.) cultivated fields in a selected plot of grassland in Kolhapur, Maharashtra, India. Adults of C. orientalis feed on the inflorescence of S. bicolor, Z. mays, H. contortus and A. mutica. The occurrence of adults in this study indicates that the emergence of beetles coincides with the flowering period of its host plants. The immature stages of this beetle feed on the decaying organic matter of crop residues in composting heaps, indicating these immature stages play a key role in the recycling of organic waste of plant and animal origin and help in the enrichment of soil nutrients, especially in the red brown soil where primary decomposers are scarce. This study provides detailed information on the morphological peculiarities of immature stages with the duration required for the completion of the life cycle. The average incubation period of eggs was 15.2 days. The first, second, and third instar lasted for 22.7, 54.3, and 46.6 days respectively. The mean pupal period was 14.7 days. The average adult longevity was 9.4 days. Keywords: beetles, Cetoniinae, emergence, incidence, waste recycling Correspondence: a [email protected], b [email protected], c [email protected], d [email protected], *Corresponding author Editor: Henry Hagedorn was editor of this paper. Received: 2 August 2010 Accepted: 10 August 2012 Copyright : This is an open access paper. We use the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 license that permits unrestricted use, provided that the paper is properly attributed. ISSN: 1536-2442 | Vol. 12, Number 127 Cite this paper as: Kumbhar SM, Mamlayya AB, Patil SJ, Bhawane GP. 2012. Biology of Chiloloba orientalis. Journal of Insect Science 12:127. Available online: http://www.insectscience.org/12.127 Journal of Insect Science | www.insectscience.org 1 Journal of Insect Science: Vol. 12 | Article 127 Kumbhar et al. Introduction Anthracophora crucifera, Oxycetonia versicolor, Chiloloba orientalis). C. orientalis The subfamily Cetoniinae (Coleoptera: plays an important role in the pollination of Scarabaedae) is a diverse group of scarabs, Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench (Poales: comprising approximately 3900 species in 315 Poaceae), Zea mays L., and Pennisetum genera (Mico et al. 2008). Cetoniids are typoides. No discussion was previously distributed worldwide except for sub-polar available about developing stages of C. areas and some offshore New Zealand Islands. orientalis. The objective of the present effort Cetoniinae is not only comprised of shiny, is to study the incidence of C. orientalis, its bright, metallic species, but also velvety forms life cycle, and the structural peculiarities of its with cryptic disruption patterns. immature stages. Adults of most species exhibit diurnal feeding Materials and Methods habits, feeding on flowers as well as plant saps and fruits. There are few explicit Experimental Site descriptions of predacious cetoniids. Cultivated fields of maize and sorhgum. Ghorpade (1975) reported a cetoniid, The observations on the adult emergence were Spilophorus maculatus, that fed on the recorded in the maize and sorghum cultivated nymphs of the tree hopper, Oxyrhachis areas near Kolhapur, Maharashtra, India. The tarandus, which is a pest of Acacia concinna. area of observation for maize and sorghum Among phytophagous cetoniinae, mouth-parts was one hectare. The observations were are adapted for dealing with soft food, and carried out at three different localities. labrum are membranous and concealed; generally, mandibles are thin and not capable Grassland. The observations on the adult of biting, and the maxillae are invested with emergence were also recorded in the grassland long hairs. at the Kolhapur district. The grasses selected for the observations were Heterpogon Orozco and Pardo-Locarno (2004) reported contortus (L.) P. Beauv. ex Roem. and Schult. that around 61 cetoniid species are known (Poales: Poaceae) and Apluda mutica L. The with the larval descriptions. Mico et al. (2000) observations were carried out at four different gave new larval descriptions of two species of sites. The observations at each site were Euphoria. Some reports were available on the carried out in a 10 X 10 m plot at Shivaji distribution, development, description of University, Kolhapur, Maharashtra, India. immature stages, and conservation of the lesser known cetoniids all over the world Observation on the beetle emergence. The (Ratcliffe 1976; Woodruff 1982; Domeck and observations were conducted weekly for four Johnson 1988; Peck and Thomas 1998; Smith, years (2007 to 2010) from August to the 2003). middle of October. The beetle emergence was recorded before, during, and after the Deshpande and Rao (1980) provided four new flowering of host plants. records of cetoniid beetles from the state of Maharashtra in India (Anatona stillata, Journal of Insect Science | www.insectscience.org 2 Journal of Insect Science: Vol. 12 | Article 127 Kumbhar et al. Density and collection of immature stages earthen pot. Hatched larvae were removed, and beetles and the paper was kept moistened. Newly Grubs. The grubs were counted in quadrates hatched larvae survived well in the petri with an area of 10 square feet, at 25 to 30 cm dishes by eating the damp filter paper. Twenty depth, at three random places in each dung newly hatched larvae were placed in each manure bed. Ten such observations were earthen pot (30 cm depth and 27 cm upper taken randomly out of 20 different dung diameter) half-filled with moist sand and a manure beds from September to January on a soil mixture in which compost was added as a fortnightly basis. food for larvae. This medium was replaced every two weeks. Beetles. The number of beetles on the four selected host plants were counted weekly Larvae pupate in earthen cells were removed from the first day of emergence of adults. This and placed in earthen pots containing a moist observation was based on the settling of mixture of sand and soil and covered with beetles on the cobs and spikelets of the host muslin cloth. Up to 50 pupae were placed in plants. Mean data expressed the density of each pot. The sand and soil mixture in the pots beetles per plot of host plants. As the beetles was moistened twice a week with tap water are diurnal in habit, the collection of beetles until the emergence of beetles. All the was carried out during morning hours, from measurements of developing stages were 07:30 to 10:00. made by millimetric paper and put to statistical analysis. Laboratory rearing of beetles for life cycle study Fecundity observations were made by Beetles were collected from fields of S. releasing a pair of beetles separately in moist bicolor and Z. mays around Kolhapur, sand and soil mixture in earthen pots as Maharashtra, India. Ten beetles of each sex described earlier. The number of eggs laid by were released in earthen pots and maintained 10 females was recorded. in the laboratory at 25° C to 30° C with a 12 hour day length and relative humidity varying Results from 65% to 75%. The beetles were fed on fresh, tender cobs of Sorghum. Earthen pots Emergence of C. orientalis were half-filled with a mixture of moist sand An emergence of C. orientalis coincided with and soil in equal proportion. Tap water was the flowering period of Maize, Sorghum, H. added to keep the soil damp. The mouths of contortus and A. mutica. The field the pots were covered with muslin cloth to observations on the occurrence clearly showed prevent beetles from escaping. the adults emerged during the first week of September and continued up to the middle of Twice a week, soil was tipped out of pots, and October. Beetles fed on the floral parts of the eggs were removed and placed on moistened grasses, both cultivated and uncultivated filter paper in 90 mm petri dishes, 35 to 40 species. Cultivated species were Z. mays and eggs per dish. The same soil was used for S. bicolor. The wild species, which were about a month, and was examined every time found in abundance in the grassland, were H. it was tipped out of the pot.