Response of Trialeurodes abutiloneus (Homoptera : Aleyrodidae) to sweet potato and two species of Hibiscus

Life history, survivorship, and adaptation of the bandedwinged whitefly, Tr ialeurodes abutiloneus (Haldeman), on sweet potato, Ipomoea batatas (L.) La m, and two species of Hibiscus were studied in laboratory and screen houses . T. abutiloneus deposited significantly more eggs on cotton rose, Hibiscus mutabilis L. (10.3-11.3 eggs per female), and roselle, Hibiscus sabdariffa L. (10.1-11.8 eggs per female), than on sweet potato (6.1-7.3 eggs per fem ale) in a choice test when the whiteflies were previously reared on cotton rose and roselle. Whereas, whiteflies originally reared on sweet potato dep osited more eggs on sweet potato (10.4) than on cotton rose (7.3) and rosel le (6.1). However, differences in oviposition among these three host plants were not significant in a no-choice test, regardless of their original hos t plants. Overall developmental times of T abutiloneus were significantly l onger on sweet potato (22.3-23.2 d) than on cotton rose (17.0-17.8 d) and r oselle (17.1-17.4 d) independent of their original host plants. Survival ra te of T. abutiloneus was only 12.3-21.4% on sweet potato compared with 71.5 -87.2% on cotton rose and 77.7-90.3% on roselle. Linear regression analysis of the survival rates of all nymphal stages of T. abutiloneus on sweet pot ato after seven consecutive generations indicated drat the survival rates i ncreased (r(2) = 0.7419-0.8483), albeit the rates were slow. Thus, sweet po tato proved to be a relatively poor host plant as well as a relatively nonp referred one for T. abutiloneus compared with cotton rose and roselle.