Effect Of Nanoparticles On Some Biological Aspects Of The Lesser Grain Borer Beetle Rhyzopertha Dominica (Fab.) (Coleoptera: Bostrichidae)

Abstract

Lesser grain borer Rhyzopertha dominica (Fab.) (Coleoptera: Bostrichidae). It is one of the harmful and dangerous pests that attack stored crops, especially wheat, and because it feeds on a very important crop for all peoples of the world, it has become very important to develop methods of control for this insect away from the use of dangerous chemical pesticides. In this study some nanoparticles were used (ZnONPs, AgNPs and SeNPs) with different concentrations (250, 500, 750, 1000) ppm. These materials showed a significant effect on the life aspects of the insect. The average number of eggs was 185 in the treatment of AgNPs, while the average number of eggs was 201.46 and 191.8 in the two treatments of ZnONPs and SeNPs, respectively. The incubation period for eggs was 10.2 days in the treatment of AgNPs, while the incubation period for eggs was 8.93 and 9.35 days in the two treatments of ZnONPs and SeNPs, respectively. AgNPs had a significant effect on the duration of the larval stage, reaching 19.53 days, and the duration of the larval phase in the two treatments of  ZnONPs and SeNPs was 18.33 and 18.46 days, respectively. As for the pupal stage, the period was 4.73 days in the treatment of AgNPs, 3.86 days in the treatment of ZnONPs, and 4.26 days in the treatment of SeNPs, the nanomaterials had a clear effect on the killing rate, as the killing rate in the adults of Rhyzopertha dominica reached 100% after 9 Days from the start of this experiment.