Oil palm leaf webworm, Acria meyricki Shashank and Ramamurthy (Lepidoptera: Depressariidae) is emerging as serious defoliator of oil palm, Elaeis guineensis Jacq. in India. It damages oil palm of all ages, from nursery to adult palms. A study was conducted in the laboratory to understand the biology and morphometrics of A. meyricki. Abundance and population dynamics of leaf webworm and its parasitoids were studied in oil plantations in Andhra Pradesh, India. Pest density (number of larvae / leaf) and parasitism rates of parasitoids were quantified. Influences of weather factors viz., maximum and minimum temperature, morning and evening relative humidity and rainfall on the abundance of leaf webworm and its parasitoids were assessed. A female moth laid about 101.60 eggs in its life time. The caterpillars developed through six to seven instars. Total life cycle completed in 32.9 days (egg to adult). Leaf webworm preferred to defoliate the older and intermediate leaves of the palms. Early stage caterpillars of feed on green parenchymatous tissues of the leaflets from under surface leaving a thin parchment like upper epidermis undamaged, while, the later stages defoliate the leaves. In severe cases, leaflets appear widely eroded, thus curling, bending and drying consequently to the pest infestation. The activity of the pest in oil palm plantations was limited to cooler months of the year i.e. October to March. Pearson Co-efficient of correlation analysis showed that minimum and maximum temperatures had significant negative effect on the development of pest population (larval density). Three parasitoids viz., Dolichogenidea (=Apanteles) hyposidrae (Wilkinson), Elasmus brevicornis Gahan and Brachymeria albotibialis (Ashmead) were identified during the study and their role in the pest population changes is discussed. Correlation analysis indicated that the parasitoids, D. hyposidrae and B. albotibialis were significantly and positively correlated with abundance of host larvae and pupae respectively. Results of feeding tests indicated that oil palm was the best host known of all species tested, with higher rate of larval pupation and adult emergence and the lower duration of time to pupation and adult emergence, which was followed by cocoa. The practical implications of this knowledge are discussed.

中文翻译：

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Acria meyricki Shashank 和 Ramamurthy（鳞翅目：Depressariidae）的生活史、物候、寄主范围和天敌：油棕的新兴落叶者 Elaeis guineenis Jacq。在印度

油棕叶网虫 Acria meyricki Shashank 和 Ramamurthy（鳞翅目：Depressariidae）正在成为油棕 Elaeis guineensis Jacq 的严重落叶虫。在印度。它会损害所有年龄段的油棕，从苗圃到成年棕榈树。在实验室中进行了一项研究，以了解 A. meyricki 的生物学和形态测量学。在印度安得拉邦的油料种植园研究了叶网虫及其寄生蜂的丰度和种群动态。量化害虫密度（幼虫/叶的数量）和寄生蜂的寄生率。评估了天气因素，即最高和最低温度、早晚相对湿度和降雨量对叶蛔虫及其寄生蜂丰度的影响。一只雌蛾一生产卵约 101.60 个。毛毛虫经过六到七龄发育。总生命周期在 32.9 天内完成（从卵到成虫）。叶网虫喜欢使棕榈树的老叶和中叶落叶。早期毛虫从下表面以小叶的绿色薄壁组织为食，留下像上表皮一样的薄羊皮纸完好无损，而后期则使叶子落叶。在严重的情况下，小叶出现广泛的侵蚀，从而卷曲、弯曲和干燥，从而导致虫害。油棕种植园中害虫的活动仅限于一年中较凉爽的月份，即 10 月至 3 月。相关分析的皮尔逊系数表明，最低和最高温度对害虫种群（幼虫密度）的发展有显着的负面影响。三种寄生蜂，即 Dolichogenidea (=Apanteles) hyposidrae (Wilkinson)，Elasmus brevicornis Gahan 和 Brachymeria albotibialis (Ashmead) 在研究过程中被鉴定出来，并讨论了它们在害虫种群变化中的作用。相关分析表明，寄生蜂、D. hyposidrae 和 B. albotibialis 分别与寄主幼虫和蛹的丰度呈显着正相关。饲养测试结果表明，油棕是所有测试物种中已知的最佳宿主，幼虫化蛹和成虫出现率较高，化蛹和成虫出现的持续时间较短，其次是可可。讨论了这些知识的实际意义。albotibialis 分别与寄主幼虫和蛹的丰度呈显着正相关。饲养测试结果表明，油棕是所有测试物种中已知的最佳宿主，幼虫化蛹和成虫出现率较高，化蛹和成虫出现的持续时间较短，其次是可可。讨论了这些知识的实际意义。albotibialis 分别与寄主幼虫和蛹的丰度呈显着正相关。饲养测试结果表明，油棕是所有测试物种中已知的最佳宿主，幼虫化蛹和成虫出现率较高，化蛹和成虫出现的持续时间较短，其次是可可。讨论了这些知识的实际意义。