Cycle and Demographic Parameters of Ephestia cautella Walker (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) on Shea Kernels

Ephestia cautella W. (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) is an insect pest associated with shea kernels that causes significant damage to stored products. In Burkina Faso, no study has been conducted to assess the biological effects on E. cautella after exposure to shea kernels, and therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate this. The tests were conducted at the Laboratory of Fundamental and Applied Entomology at the “Université Joseph KI‐ZERBO,” where the average temperature and humidity were 27.5°C and 46.7%, respectively. Thirty pairs from zero to one‐day‐old E. cautella were evaluated to determine the reproductive potential of the females and to assess the developmental time of the species on shea kernels. Mated females had an average weight of 16 mg and length of 11.1 mm and lived 8.9 days. Males had an average weight of 9.3 mg and length of 8.7 mm and lived 16.9 days. Each female laid around 155 eggs in 4 days for a hatching rate of 94.6% and an emergence rate of 56.7% (80.7 individuals/female). The first‐generation offspring was composed of 61.2% females and 38.8% males. The egg incubation period was 4 days, the larval development period was 55 days, and the pupal period was 12 days for a total average of 71 days. The population of E. cautella doubles in size in 6.8 days for a generation time of 76.3 days. The knowledge of the biological parameters of this moth represents a major asset in the development of a control strategy.