Biological and population growth traits of Spodoptera littoralis (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) on various mung bean (Vigna radiata) varieties

Spodoptera littoralis (Boisd) is globally known as an important polyphagous pest that causes considerable damage to agricultural crops in the world. In this study, the effects of different mung bean (Vigna radiata L.) varieties, including Parto, Simite1, Simite2, VC6371, VC3960, VC6173A, and VC6368 were investigated on the life history variables, biological characteristics, and population growth parameters of S. littoralis. Our purpose was to identify potential tolerance characteristics of mung bean varieties against S. littoralis. Our findings showed that various mung bean varieties significantly impact the life history and demographical parameters of S. littoralis. The results revealed that the longest and shortest developmental time across all immature stages were recorded on Simite2 (42.52 days) and VC6371 (37.40 days) varieties, respectively. The lowest fecundity values were observed on the Simite2 host (89.27 eggs), while the highest was on the VC6173A host (626.59 eggs). The highest and lowest values of net reproductive rate (R₀) were 233.17 and 25.36 offspring on VC6173A and Simite2 varieties, respectively. Furthermore, S. littoralis showed the highest intrinsic rate of increase (r) when reared on the VC6371 variety (0.99 day⁻¹), while the lowest value was on the Simite2 (0.11 day⁻¹) variety. Moreover, S. littoralis fed on the Simite2 (46.47 days) and VC6371 varieties (42.27 days) achieved the longest and shortest generation time (T). The cluster analysis results indicated that VC6173A was a susceptible variety, while the Simite2 variety revealed tolerance behaviors against S. littoralis and can be considered for IPM strategies.