Field performance of boll weevils (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) sterilized with diflubenzuron and gamma irradiation [Anthonomus grandis grandis]

Anthonomus grandis grandis Boheman, sterilized by being fed a diet containing 100 ppm of diflubenzuron for 5 days after emergence followed by 10 krad of irradiation, were tested in 0.8-ha plots in two locations. In south Mississippi, where a few native weevils were present and the plots were infested by releasing overwintered adults, egg hatch was reduced but there was no reduction in infestation or weevil captures. In Arkansas, where no native weevils were present and the plots were infested by allowing weevils to emerge from squares, there were significant differences in egg hatch, infestation levels, and weevil captures.