A Redescription of Pericapritermes ceylonicus (Holmgren, 1911) (Blattodea, Isoptera, Termitidae) and First Record from India

Until now, the occurrence of Pericapritermes ceylonicus (Holmgren) was not confirmed in the Indian mainland. Here, we document the occurrence of this species from Karnataka state constituting its first report from India. The species was identified based on the soldier caste, and the worker characters were described for the first time, including the digestive tube and enteric valve armature. The enteric valve was characterized by the presence of gradually reducing triangular spines. The study provides the basis for further taxonomic characterization of Pericapritermes occurring in India using gut morphology of workers

Pheromone Trapping Protocols for Brinjal Shoot and Fruit Borer, Leucinodes orbonalis Guenee (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae): Evaluation of Trap Design, Quantity and Dispenser

Studies were conducted at the Indian Institute of Horticultural Research, Bangalore, and Central Horticultural Experiment Station, Bhubaneshwar, India, to evaluate trap design, quantity of pheromone loading and dispensers for attracting brinjal shoot and fruit borer, Leucinodes orbonalis Guenee (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) using indigenously synthesized pheromone lure [synthesized by Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (IICT), Hyderabad], during 2003 and 2004. A water trap consisting of plastic container (20 cm dia. and 7.5 cm depth) with a facility to place the pheromone septum was designed. Pheromone load of 4 mg in both water trap and Pest Control India (PCI®) delta trap was observed to catch higher number of male moths compared to dispensers with lesser loading. When trap designs were compared, water trap with pheromone lure was observed to attract higher number of males than Pest Control India (PCI®) delta trap. Among the different pheromone dispensers tested, rubber septum was superior to plastic vial or plastic septum. Rubber septum supplied by Bio Pest Management® captured significantly higher number of moths compared to rubber and plastic septum supplied by difTerent firms. A comparison of IICT synthesized lures along with some commercially available lures indicated that Bio Pest Management® lure dispensed in rubber outperformed PCI® and IICT lures

A new species of Diplatys (Insecta, Dermaptera, Diplatyidae) earwig from the Western Ghats of India

To explore diversity of earwigs (Dermaptera) in different agricultural ecosystems of South India, an extensive taxonomic survey was conducted in 2020 during which an undescribed species of Diplatys was collected. Twenty-one species of the genus Diplatys (Diplatyidae, Diplatyinae) have been reported to date from India, of which six species are known from Karnataka, South India. Based on a male specimen collected from a sugarcane field in Karnataka, a new species, Diplatys sahyadriensis sp. nov., is described as the twenty-second species of this genus from India. A revised key to the males of Diplatys species from India and Sri Lanka is provided. This new record adds to the known species diversity in the Sahyadri Ranges of the Western Ghats in Shivamogga District, Karnataka, part of the Southern Plateau and Hills agro-climatic region of India

The short-horned grasshoppers (Acrididae and Pyrgomorphidae: Orthoptera) of Karnataka, India: A checklist and distribution data

Short-horned grasshoppers’ checklist is presented here. In the present study, the inventory was created using data from a survey conducted in various districts of Karnataka between 2019-2021, including Chikkamagaluru, Dakshina Kannada, Davanagere, Hassan, Kodagu, Shivamogga, Udupi, Uttar Kannada and orthopteran collections at the Insect Systematics Laboratory, Department of Entomology, KSNUAHS, Shivamogga and literature published to date from various parts of Karnataka. A total of 101 species/subspecies belonging to 66 genera, 15 subfamilies and two families i.e., Acrididae and Pyrgomorphidae were reported. Several species were recorded for the first time from the districts investigated, including 9 in Chikkamagaluru, 4 in Dakshina Kannada, 1 each in Hassan and Kodagu, 3 in Shivamogga, 9 in Udupi and 1 in Uttar Kannada. This is the first-ever checklist featuring distribution records for short-horned grasshoppers in Karnataka and is updated with the Orthoptera species file online. The index may help for future taxonomic diversity studies of grasshoppers of Karnatak

A new species of Diplatys (Insecta, Dermaptera, Diplatyidae) earwig from the Western Ghats of India

To explore diversity of earwigs (Dermaptera) in different agricultural ecosystems of South India, an extensive taxonomic survey was conducted in 2020 during which an undescribed species of Diplatys was collected. Twenty-one species of the genus Diplatys (Diplatyidae, Diplatyinae) have been reported to date from India, of which six species are known from Karnataka, South India. Based on a male specimen collected from a sugarcane field in Karnataka, a new species, Diplatys sahyadriensis sp. nov., is described as the twenty-second species of this genus from India. A revised key to the males of Diplatys species from India and Sri Lanka is provided. This new record adds to the known species diversity in the Sahyadri Ranges of the Western Ghats in Shivamogga District, Karnataka, part of the Southern Plateau and Hills agro-climatic region of India

Effect of Application of Secondary Nutrients on Growth, Yield and Quality of Maize (Zea mays L.)

A field experiment was conducted during Rabi 2022 at the Agriculture and Horticulture Research Station, Honnavile, Shivamogga on sandy clay loam soil to study the response of maize to secondary nutrients application. The experiment was laid out in Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) and consisted of nine treatments replicated three times. The treatments consisted of package of practice (POP) (T1), POP + soil application of two levels of calcium, i.e., 25 and 50 kg ha-1 through lime (T2 and T3), dolomite (T4 and T5, which amount to 15.02 and 30.04 kg ha-1 of magnesium, respectively) and gypsum (T6 and T7, which amount to 19.96 and 39.91 kg ha-1 of sulphur, respectively). Treatments T8 and T9 consisted of POP + combined application of all three secondary nutrients through lime, magnesium sulphate and bentonite sulphur to meet the same level of nutrient as treatments T2 to T7. Among the treatments, application of POP + calcium @ 25 kg ha-1 through lime + 15.02 kg ha-1 of Mg + 19.6 kg ha-1 of S (T8) showed significantly higher values for growth parameters viz., plant height (196.65 cm), leaf area (4804.70 cm2), leaf area index (5.55) total dry matter (273.80 g plant-1) and yield parameters viz.,  cob length (16.93 cm), number of grains cob-1 (511.08), kernel yield (6772 kg ha-1) and stover yield (8221 kg ha-1). Similarly the same treatment recorded significantly higher grain protein content (8.99%) compared to other treatments. However the test weight, harvest index and oil content of maize remained unaffected due the applied secondary nutrients