Influence of Weather Parameters on Abundance of Litchi Fruit Borer (Conopomorpha sinensis, Bradely, 1986)

Litchi (Litchi chinensis Sonn) is a subtropical fruit belonging to family Sapindaceae. India is the second largest global producer of Litchi, next only to China. Litchi fruit borer (Conopomorpha sinensis Bradely,1986 (Lepidoptera: Gracillaridae), attacks Litchi plant during different seasons. Their seasonal abundance causes damage to different plant parts including the fruits and leaves throughout the year. Their abundance and therefore damaging potentialities are affected by different environmental factors such as temperature, relative humidity, seasonal variations etc. An attempt has been made through this research work to precisely ascertain the impact of some of these factors on the proliferation of this pest. The result obtained will help in devising their control measures. The correlation analysis revealed significant negative correlation between proliferation of pest and temperature, relative humidity, rainfall, wind velocity. Among various weather parameters average temperature and precipitation shows positive and significant correlation with fruit damage.