Abstract
The interactions of the rice weevil, Sitophilus zea-mais Motschulsky, the lesser grain borer, Rhizopertha dominica (Fabricius), and the red flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum (Herbst), were studied in the laboratory under controlled conditions of food and space limitation and differing original infestation ratios, at a temperature of 29 ± 0.5 C and 75 ± 5% relative humidity. Sorghum grain with approximately 14 per cent moisture content was used as the culture medium. In interspecific cultures, the interactions between the rice weevil and the lesser grain borer adversely affected the population growth of each. On the other hand, the red flour beetle responded favorable when living together with the rice weevil or the lesser grain borer, and exerted no significant influence on the populations of either. In all cases when the red flour beetle was reared by itself (control population), it failed to build up a comparable population. When the amount of food was dept constant by adding additional grain, a 245-day experiment showed that the rice weevil populations under all conditions began to approach the same level after the 110th day. Previous to that the control population maintained a significantly high population level. The lesser grain borer populations in interspecific cultures were much lower than the control population and exhibited similar levels during the course of the experiment. The red flour beetle population in control culture showed a relatively flat, smooth curve and gradually declined, while in mixed-species cultures it maintained fairly high population levels. ...
Kabir, Syed Md. Humayun (1966). Interactions in stored grain of populations of Sitophilus zea-mais Motschulsky, Rhizopertha dominica (Fabricius) and Tribolium castaneum (Herbst). Texas A&M University. Texas A&M University. Libraries. Available electronically from
https : / /hdl .handle .net /1969 .1 /DISSERTATIONS -180207.