Argyrotaenia sphaleropa (Meyrick) (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) in citrus in the State of Paraná, Brazil.

Argyrotaenia sphaleropa (Meyrick) is associated with various fruit species in South America. This tortricid was first detected in citrus, Citrus sinensis (L.) Osbeck, in Brazil, in commercial groves in northern Paraná, during the 1994/95-crop season. The aim of this work was to study the biology of this lepidopteran under laboratory conditions (28 +/- 2 degrees C, 70 +/-10% UR, 14h photofase) using the citrus cultivar Pêra. Larvae obtained from egg masses collected in a commercial citrus grove in Rolândia, PR, were individually placed on citrus terminal leaves inside glass shell vials (8.5 x 2.5 cm) until adulthood. A male and a female moth were then transferred to acrylic cages (13 x 10 cm) containing inside a bouquet made with new citrus flush to serve as oviposition substrate. Adults were fed daily with a 10% honey solution. The biological parameters evaluated were duration of development of egg, larval and pupal stages; pupae weight; duration of pre-oviposition and oviposition periods, fecundity and longevity. The length of the egg to adult stage was around 36 days. The pre-oviposition period was almost two days, the oviposition period approximately ten days and the embryonary period around six days. Adult longevity was almost 15 days for females and nine days for males, and the lifetime fecundity was slightly over 180 eggs.