Etude morphologique et biologique de la coccinelle Scymnus couturieri Chazeau (Coleoptera-Coccinellidae) prédatrice de la cochenille farineuse du manioc Phenacoccus manihoti Matile-Ferrero

Abstract

Morphological and Biological Study of Scymnus couturieri Chazeau (Coleoptera-Coccinellidae), Predator of Cassava Mealybug Phenacoccus manihoti Matile-Ferrero (Homoptera-Pseudococcidae) in Ivory Coast. Scymnus couturieri is a coccinellidae which was first described from Ivory Coast (2). But that morphological description was just based on the adult. The trophic action developed by Scymnus couturieri in the regulation of the abundance of the cassava mealybug led us to precise that description and to extend our knowledge of the coccinellidae by studying the morphological aspects and the biological parameters. The study brings to the fore the holometaboly development, the low fecondity and the long-lasting biological cycle of the predator.

Keywords

• Predator
• Description
• Mealybug
• Cassava
• Ivory Coast