RESISTÊNCIA DE CULTIVARES DE GRÃO-DE-BICO À Chloridea virencens (Lepidoptera:Noctuidae)

Abstract

Chickpea is a leguminous plant in which its chickpea is much appreciated and rich in nutrients important for food, being well adapted to dry and mild climate conditions. Among the main pests that attack the crop is the caterpillar C. virencens, considered a polyphagous pest that feeds on leaves, flowers, pods and grains. The objective of this work was to evaluate the resistance and field behavior of six chickpea cultivars: BRS Cícero, BRS Aleppo, BRS Cristalino, BRS Toro, BRS Kalifa, Jamu 96, C. virencens caterpillar. In the choice of attractiveness test the BRS Kalifa and BRS Cícero cultivars were less preferable, while in the no-choice test the less preferable cultivars were Jamu 96 and BRS Kalifa. This lower preference is associated with antixenosis resistance mechanisms. BRS Kalifa and BRS Toro presented higher leaf trichome densities. The cultivars BRS Aleppo, BRS Cristalino and Jamu 96 showed differences in the initial parameter of larval weight at 10 days. In field cultivar BRS Aleppo presented the highest average value of caterpillar population, and Jamu 96 presented the lowest percentage of damaged pods and had higher yield than the others, characterizing to be more tolerant to caterpillar attack. BRS Kalifa, Jamu 96 and BRS Aleppo cultivars showed promising results to be used as a source of resistance to C. virencens caterpillar.