Some of biological characteristics of xylophagous moth, Euzopherodes vapidella vapidella on olive trees in Fasa- Fars province, Iran

Xylophagous moth, Euzopherodes vapidella vapidella Mann (Lep.: Pyralidae), as a new pest in Iran, causes damage in olive orchards of Fars province specially at Fasa, Kazeron, Darab and Shiraz area in recent years. Its biological characteristics was studies using light trap and field sampling during 2007-2008 at Fasa olive orchards. Female moths lay their eggs at the wounded sites, which cause by pruning, grafting and broken branches. Neonate larvae penetrate under the bark and fed on cambium layers. The larval and pupal development occurred under the barks. The pest overwintered in different larval stages, mostly in final instars.The first adult moths appeared gradually from mid-March, and based on light traps observations, its four generations were observed in mid-April, the second half of July, late-September and mid-December, respectively.The mean length of embryonic, larval and pupal stage development lasted 5.25 ± 0.18, 21.8 ±0.19 and 7.4 ± 0.24 days, respectively. Sex ratio of the male: female in laboratory and field study were same and estimated 1: 1.4.  The longevity of male and female moths was 7.45 ±0.25 and 5.15±0.17 days, respectively.