Primary and secondary plant metabolites determining the suitability of pistachio kernels for the carob moth

• Published in: Journal of applied entomology (1986) 2023-06, Vol.147 (5), p.346-355
• Main Authors: Baghery, Fatemeh, Falahati‐pour, Soudeh Khanamani, Ali, Dini, Michaud, J. P., Soufbaf, Mahmoud
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Anthocyanins; Butterflies & moths; Carbohydrates; Carob; Cultivars; Developmental stages; Ectomyelois ceratoniae; Fecundity; Flavonoids; Food conversion; Growth rate; Kernels; Larvae; Larval development; Life history; Mathematical analysis; Metabolites; Nutrient content; Nuts; Orchards; Phenols; phytochemistry; plant secondary compounds; Pyralidae; Reproduction; Secondary metabolites; Tannins
• ISSN: 0931-2048; 1439-0418
• DOI: 10.1111/jen.13116

The carob moth, Ectomyelois ceratoniae (Zeller) (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) is a serious pest of fruit and nut crops worldwide that causes significant losses in Iranian pistachio orchards. In order to assess variation among cultivars is susceptibility to carob moth and biochemical correlates, the present study evaluated the suitability of kernels of 10 pistachio cultivars for E. ceratoniae development and reproductive performance under laboratory conditions: 25 ± 1°C, 65 ± 5% RH and a 16:8 (L:D) photoperiod. The primary and secondary metabolites of nuts were quantified and correlated with life history traits and various metrics of biological performance and indices of relative suitability were calculated. Nut protein content averaged 18.4 ± 0.1% and did not vary significantly among cultivars. Two cultivars yielded significantly slower larval development and lower values for relative growth rate, female longevity and fecundity, relative to all others. Suitability indices calculated from moth life history parameters varied by a factor of 4.66 across cultivars, with values