Callosobruchus maculatus (Fabr.) is an important pest in stored cowpea, Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp., with ample distribution in tropical and subtropical regions. The effect of alternation of cowpea genotypes, susceptible (S) and resistant (R), on the biology of (C. maculatus) was studied after four generations. A no-choice test was carried out in a completely randomized design, factorial scheme, with five treatments, four host combinations (RR, RS, SR and SS) and five replications. Each replication consisted of 30 grains of each genotype infested by two insect couples. The number of eggs per female was not different within or between combinations, evidencing that the genotypes and their alternation did not affect C. maculatus fecundity. Egg viability, however, varied between genotypes and between combinations. In combination RR, the longest duration of the immature stage was verified for genotype IT89KD-245; in addition, all genotypes presented the smallest survival for the same stage, resulting in a higher mortality of the pest. The resistance index categorized combination RR as moderately resistant for genotypes IT89KD-245, BR14-Mulato and BR17-Gurguéia, and as susceptible (S) only for IT89KD-260, demonstrating that these combinations were not very adequate for the development of C. maculatus, a fact that was confirmed by the better performance of the pest on the genotype from combination SS, and because of a reduction in its performance when it returned to resistant genotypes.
insecta; plant resistance; antibiosis; stored cowpea pest
