Monitoring and management of Whitefly, Bemisia tabaci Gennadius (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) using novel insecticides in potato crop

Abstract An experiment was conducted for the first time to understand the population dynamics of whitefly, Bemisia tabaci Gennadius (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) on potato crop in eastern Uttar Pradesh and also study the effect of different novel insecticides against this pest in the year 2024-25. Population of whitefly, which is also an important vector of Potato Apical Leaf curl Virus Disease (PALCVD) was monitored at almost daily intervals on 100 compound leaves from 34 potato plants of variety Kufri Pukhraj. The results revealed that high whitefly population remained in the range of 18–40 whiteflies/100 compound leaves in November 2024, which declined progressively as the winter season commences. Coccinelid beetles were recorded at the time of high whitefly activity in potato crop. The correlation analysis also revealed strong positive correlation between whitefly population and ambient temperature condition. The future events of rising ambient temperature likely to increase whitefly population and cause colossal yield losses in potato crop. Therefore, it is imperative to understand the effect of novel insecticides against this insect pest. The single spray application of Flupyradifurone 200 SL caused maximum reduction in whitefly population (88.5%) followed by Diafenthiuron 50 WP (83.8%)