TNAU facing necessity to scale up production of predators, parasitoids to control Whitefly infestation

The Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU) is faced with the necessity for broad-basing biological control of Rugose Spiralling Whitefly (RSW) that has infested the predominant coconut crop in the Pollachi-Udumalpet belt in Coimbatore and Tiruppur districts.

The university is taking initiatives for scaling up adequate supply of predators and parasitoids for controlling the spread of the pest through its own Department of Agricultural Entomology and the Coconut Research Station (CRS), Aliyarnagar.

The pest starts showing up during January and the drooping leaves become quite visible during March-April, particularly in dwarf and hybrid crop varieties.

According to Subramani, a coconut farmer in Udumalpet, supply of adequate quantities of parasites and predators by the government authorities was the only option for controlling the pest.

The CRS has been scaling up the production of Apertochrysa astur eggs. The larvae act as a crucial biological control agent feeding on RSW eggs and nymphs. Having initiated production of the Apertochrysa astur eggs five months back, the CRS now has a capacity to produce 2000 eggs per day. The capacity was being scaled up for increasing the production five-fold, according to official sources.

The CRS is also into production of braconid wasps for biological control of black-headed caterpillar, a pest that has infested crops in Sulur and surroundings in Coimbatore district, Tiruppur, Theni, and Dharmapuri-Krishnagiri belt. About 5,000 adult braconid wasps are being produced and supplied every day, it is learnt.

At the TNAU, the Department of Agricultural Entomology has scheduled a training programme for mass multiplication of parasites and predators on Wednesday (January 21, 2026).

The Coconut Development Board has been funding the researches in TNAU for making the bio-control agent available to the coconut farmers at affordable cost.

The emphasis of the Central team that carried out inspections last November at farms in Pollachi North, Pollachi South, Anamalai and Kinathukadavu blocks to determine Rugose Spiralling Whitefly and and root wilt infestations in coconut plantations, for preventing the spread was on mass multiplication of predators and parasitoids and destruction of heavily infested older leaves. The team consisted of officials and scientists of Union Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Coconut Development Board, Central Plantation Crops Research Institute (CPCRI), TNAU, and senior officials of Department of Horticulture and Plantation Crops, Government of Tamil Nadu.

A year back, farmers were advised to utilise aphelinid parasitoids for biological control of two whitefly species: rugose spiralling whitefly (Aleurodicus rugioperculatus Martin) and Bondar’s nesting whitefly (Paraleyrodes bondari Peracchi).