Morphometric Variation between and within Population of Leptocorisa oratorius (Fabricius)
Shaik Abdul Mujeeb
Department of Entomology, Bihar Agricultural University, Sabour, 813210 Bhagalpur, Bihar, India.
Jajati Mandal
School of Science, Engineering and Environment, University of Salford, Salford, United Kingdom.
Tarak Nath Goswami *
Department of Entomology, Bihar Agricultural University, Sabour, 813210 Bhagalpur, Bihar, India.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
Leptocorisa oratorius is one of the most important grain sucking pests of paddy in Eastern and Southern India. There are scanty of studies on its morphometric variation between and within population. In the present study, adult specimens of the L. oratorius were collected from the rice fields of two different geographical locations of India namely, Tirupathi (Andhra Pradesh) and Sabour (Bihar). Twenty five morphometric parameters were studied in detail. The statistical analysis showed that Antennal segment I, Antennal segment II, Antennal segment III, Pronotum width, Side length of scutellum and Width of metathoracic sternum varied significantly and consistently within (between sexes) and between population. Therefore, the study highlighted the influence of geographical locations and sex on morphological variability in L. oratorius.
Keywords: Leptocorisa oratorius, morphometry, paddy, gundhi bug