M.Sc. in Entomology

 M.Sc. in Entomology

ENTOMOLOGY 

Course Structure – at a Glance

 

COURSE TITLE 

Masters' Degree 

• INSECT MORPHOLOGY 
• INSECT ANATOMY, PHYSIOLOGY AND NUTRITION    
• PRINCIPLES OF TAXONOMY AND CLASSIFICATION OF INSECTS 
• INSECT ECOLOGY 
• INSECT PATHOLOGY 
• BIOLOGICAL CONTROL OF CROP PESTS AND WEEDS 
• TOXICOLOGY OF INSECTICIDES 
• PLANT RESISTANCE TO INSECTS 
• PRINCIPLES OF INTEGRATED PEST MANAGEMENT 
• PESTS OF FIELD, HORTICULTURAL AND PLANTATION CROPS AND STORAGE ENTOMOLOGY  
• INSECT VECTORS OF PLANT VIRUSES AND OTHER PATHOGENS  
• COMMERCIAL ENTOMOLOGY 
• MASTER’S SEMINAR 
• MASTER’S RESEARCH 

 

Doctoral Degree 

• IMMATURE STAGES OF INSECTS 
• INSECT BEHAVIOUR 
• RECENT TRENDS IN BIOLOGICAL CONTROL 
• ADVANCED INSECTICIDE TOXICOLOGY 
• ADVANCED HOST PLANT RESISTANCE 
• ADVANCED ACAROLOGY 
• MOLECULAR APPROACHES IN ENTOMOLOGICAL RESEARCH 
• ADVANCED INTEGRATED PEST MANAGEMENT 
• DOCTORAL SEMINAR-I 
• DOCTORAL SEMINAR-II 
• DOCTORAL RESEARCH 

 

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ENTOMOLOGY 

Course Contents 

 

INSECT MORPHOLOGY

Theory 

• UNIT I 
• Principles, utility and relevance: insect body wall structure, cuticular outgrowths, colouration and special integumentary structures in insects, body tagmata, sclerites and segmentation. 
• UNIT II 
• Head- Origin, structure and modification; types of mouthparts and antennae, tentorium and neck sclerites. 
• UNIT III 
• Thorax- Areas and sutures of tergum, sternum and pleuron, pterothorax; Wings: structure and modifications, venation, wing coupling apparatus and mechanism of flight; Legs: structure and modifications. 
• UNIT IV 
• Abdomen- Segmentation and appendages; Genitalia and their modifications; Embryonic and post-embryonic development; Types of metamorphosis. Insect sense organs (mechano-, photo- and chemoreceptors). 

 

Practical 

• Study of insect segmentation, various tagmata and their appendages; preparation of permanent mounts of different body parts and their appendages of taxonomic importance including male and female genitalia. Sense organs. 

 

Suggested Readings 

• Chapman RF. 1998. The Insects: Structure and Function. Cambridge Univ. Press, Cambridge. 
• David BV & Ananthkrishnan TN. 2004. General and Applied Entomology. 
• Tata-McGraw Hill, New Delhi. 
• Duntson PA. 2004. The Insects: Structure, Function and Biodiversity. 
• Kalyani Publ., New Delhi. 
• Evans JW. 2004. Outlines of Agricultural Entomology. Asiatic Publ., New Delhi. 
• Richards OW & Davies RG. 1977. Imm’s General Text Book of Entomology. 10th Ed. Chapman & Hall, London. 
• Saxena RC & Srivastava RC. 2007. Entomology: At a Glance. Agrotech Publ. Academy, Jodhpur. 
• Snodgross RE. 1993. Principles of Insect Morphology. Cornell Univ. Press, Ithaca. 

 

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INSECT ANATOMY, PHYSIOLOGY AND NUTRITION 

Theory 

• UNIT I 
• Scope and importance of insect anatomy and physiology. 
• UNIT II 
• Structure, modification and physiology of different systems- digestive, circulatory, respiratory, excretory, nervous, sensory, reproductive, musculature, endocrine and exocrine glands. 
• UNIT III 
• Thermodynamics; physiology of integument, moulting; growth, metamorphosis and diapause. 
• UNIT IV 
• Insect nutrition- role of vitamins, proteins, amino acids, carbohydrates, lipids, minerals and other food constituents; extra and intra-cellular microorganisms and their role in physiology; artificial diets. 

 

Practical 

• Dissection of different insects to study comparative anatomical details of different systems; preparation of permanent mounts of internal systems; chromatographic analysis of free amino acids of haemolymph; determination of chitin in insect cuticle; examination of insect haemocytes; determination of respiratory quotient; preparation and evaluation of various diets; consumption, utilization and digestion of natural and artificial diets. 

 

Suggested Readings 

• Chapman RF.1998. Insects: Structure and Function. ELBS Ed., London. 
• Duntson PA. 2004. The Insects: Structure, Function and Biodiversity. 
• Kalyani Publ., New Delhi. 
• Kerkut GA & Gilbert LI. 1985. Comprehensive Insect Physiology, Biochemistry and Pharmacology. Vols. I-XIII. Pergamon Press, New York. 
• Patnaik BD. 2002. Physiology of Insects. Dominant, New Delhi. 
• Richards OW & Davies RG. 1977. Imm’s General Text Book of Entomology. 10th Ed. Vol. 1. Structure, Physiology and Development. Chapman & Hall, New York. 
• Saxena RC & Srivastava RC. 2007. Entomology at a Glance. Agrotech Publ. Academy, Jodhpur. 
• Wigglesworth VB.1984. Insect Physiology. 8th Ed. Chapman & Hall, New York. 

 

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PRINCIPLES OF TAXONOMY and CLASSIFICATION  OF INSECTS

Theory 

• UNIT I 
• Introduction to history and principles of systematics and importance. Levels and functions of systematics. Identification, purpose, methodscharacter matrix, taxonomic keys. Descriptions- subjects of descriptions, characters, nature of characters, analogy vs homology, parallel vs convergent evolution, intraspecific variation in characters, polythetic and polymorphic taxa, sexual dimorphism. 
• UNIT II 
• Classification of animals: Schools of classification- Phenetics, Cladistics and Evolutionary classification. Components of Biological Classification: Hierarchy, Rank, Category and Taxon. Species concepts, cryptic, sibling and etho-species, infra-specific categories. Introduction to numerical, biological and cytogenetical taxonomy. 
• UNIT III 
• Nomenclature: Common vs Scientific names. International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, criteria for availability of names, validity of names. Categories of names under consideration of ICZN. Publications, Principles of priority, and homonymy, synonymy, type concept in zoological nomenclature. Speciation, anagenesis vs cladogenesis, allopatric, sympatric and parapatric processes. UNIT IV 
• Brief evolutionary history of Insects- introduction to phylogeny of insects and Major Classification of Superclass Hexapoda – Classes – Ellipura (Collembola, Protura), Diplura and Insecta- Orders contained. 
• UNIT V 
• Distinguishing characters, general biology, habits and habitats of Insect orders and economically important families contained in them. Collembola, Protura, Diplura. Class Insecta: Subclass Apterygota – Archaeognatha, Thysanura. Subclass: Pterygota, Division Palaeoptera – Odonata and Ephemeroptera. Division: Neoptera: Subdivision: 
• Orthopteroid and Blattoid Orders (=Oligoneoptera: Plecoptera, Blattodea, 
• Isoptera, Mantodea, Grylloblattodea, Dermaptera, Orthoptera, 
• Phasmatodea, Mantophasmatodea, Embioptera, Zoraptera), Subdivision: Hemipteroid Orders (=Paraneoptera): Psocoptera, Phthiraptera, Thysanoptera and Hemiptera. 
• UNIT VI 
• Distinguishing characters, general biology, habits and habitats of Insect orders and economically important families contained in them (Continued). 
• Division Neoptera – Subdivision Endopterygota, Section Neuropteroid- 
• Coleopteroid Orders: Strepsiptera, Megaloptera, Raphidioptera, 
• Neuroptera and Coleoptera, Section Panorpoid Orders Mecoptera, Siphonaptera, Diptera, Trichoptera, Lepidoptera, and Section Hymenopteroid Orders: Hymenoptera. 

 

Practical 

• Study of Orders of insects and their identification using taxonomic keys. 
• Keying out families of insects of different major Orders: Odonata, 
• Orthoptera, Blattodea, Mantodea, Isoptera, Hemiptera, Thysanoptera, Phthiraptera, Neuroptera, Coleoptera, Diptera, Lepidoptera and Hymenoptera. Field visits to collect insects of different orders. 

 

Suggested Readings 

• Blackwelder RE. 1967. Taxonomy - A Text and Reference Book. John Wiley & Sons, New York. 
• Kapoor VC. 1983. Theory and Practice in Animal Taxonomy. Oxford & IBH, New Delhi. 
• Mayr E. 1971. Principles of Systematic Zoology. Tata McGraw-Hill, New Delhi. 
• Quicke DLJ. 1993. Principles and Techniques of Contemporary Taxonomy. Blackie, London. 
• CSIRO 1990. The Insects of Australia: A Text Book for Students and Researchers. 2nd Ed. Vols. I & II, CSIRO. Cornell Univ. Press, Ithaca. 
• Freeman S & Herron JC. 1998. Evolutionary Analysis. Prentice Hall, New Delhi. 
• Richards OW & Davies RG. 1977. Imm’s General Text Book of Entomology. 10th Ed. Chapman & Hall, London. 
• Ross HH.1974. Biological Systematics. Addison Wesley Publ. Co. Triplehorn CA & Johnson NF. 1998. Borror and DeLong’s Introduction to the Study of Insects. 7th Ed. Thomson/ Brooks/ Cole, USA/Australia. 

 

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INSECT ECOLOGY

Theory 

• UNIT I 
• History and Definition. Basic Concepts. Organisation of the Biological world. Plato’s Natural Balance vs Ecological Dynamics as the modern view. Abundance and diversity of insects, Estimates and Causal factors. Study of abundance and distribution and relation between the two. Basic principles of abiotic factors and their generalised action on insects. 
• Implications for abundance and distribution of organisms including insects- Law of the Minimum, Law of Tolerance, and biocoenosis, Systems approach to ecology. 
• UNIT II 
• Basic concepts of abundance- Model vs Real world. Population growthbasic models – Exponential vs Logistic models. Discrete vs Continuous growth models. Concepts of Carrying capacity, Environmental Resistance and Optimal yield. Vital Statistics- Life Tables and their application to insect biology. Survivorship curves. Case studies of insect life tables. Population dynamics- Factors affecting abundance- Environmental factors, dispersal and migration, Seasonality in insects. Classification and mechanisms of achieving different seasonality- Diapause (Quiescence) - aestivation, hibernation. 
• UNIT III 
• Biotic factors- Food as a limiting factor for distribution and abundance, Nutritional Ecology. Food chain- web and ecological succession. Interspecific interactions- Basic factors governing the interspecific interactions- Classification of interspecific interactions - The argument of cost-benefit ratios. Competition- Lotka-Volterra model, Concept of nicheecological homologues, competitive exclusion. Prey-predator interactions- Basic model- Lotka-Volterra Model, Volterra’s principle. Functional and numerical response. Defense mechanisms against predators/parasitoids- Evolution of mimicry, colouration, concept of predator satiation; evolution of life history strategies. 
• UNIT IV 
• Community ecology- Concept of guild, Organisation of communities- Hutchinson Ratio, May’s d/w, Relation between the two and their association with Dyar’s Law and Przibram's law. Relative distribution of organisms, Concept of diversity- the Wallacian view. Assessment of diversity. Diversity- stability debate, relevance to pest management. Pest management as applied ecology. 

 

Practical 

• Types of distributions of organisms. Methods of sampling insects, estimation of densities of insects and understanding the distribution parameters- Measures of central tendencies, Poisson Distribution, Negative Binomial Distribution. Determination of optimal sample size. Learning to fit basic population growth models and testing the goodness of fit. Fitting Holling’s Disc equation, Assessment of prey-predator densities from natural systems and understanding the correlation between the two. 
• Assessing and describing niche of some insects of a single guild. Calculation of niche breadth, activity breadth and diagramatic representation of niches of organisms. Calculation of some diversity indices- Shannon’s, Simpson’s and Avalanche Index and understanding their associations and parameters that affect their values. Problem solving in ecology. Field visits to understand different ecosystems and to study insect occurrence in these systems. 

 

Suggested Readings 

• Chapman JL & Reiss MJ. 2006. Ecology: Principles & Applications. 2nd Ed. Cambridge Univ. Press, Cambridge. 
• Gotelli NJ & Ellison AM. 2004. A Primer of Ecological Statistics. Sinauer Associates, Inc., Sunderland, MA. 
• Gotelli NJ. 2001. A Primer of Ecology. 3rd Ed. Sinauer Associates, Inc., 
• Sunderland, MA 
• Gupta RK. 2004. Advances in Insect Biodiversity. Agrobios, Jodhpur. Krebs CJ. 1998. Ecological Methodology. 2nd Ed. Benjamin-Cummings Publ. Co., New York. 
• Krebs CJ. 2001. Ecology: The Experimental Analysis of Distribution and Abundance. 5th Ed. Benjamin-Cummings Publ. Co., New York. Magurran AE. 1988. Ecological Diversity and its Measurement. Princeton Univ. Press, Princeton. 
• Price PW. 1997. Insect Ecology. 3rd Ed. John Wiley, New York. Real LA & Brown JH. (Eds). 1991. Foundations of Ecology: Classic Papers with Commentaries. University of Chicago Press, Chicago. 
• Southwood TRE & Henderson PA. 2000. Ecological Methods. 3rd Ed. 
• Methuen & Co. Ltd., London. 
• Speight MR, Hunta MD & Watt AD. 2006. Ecology of Insects: Concepts and Application. Elsevier Science Publ., The Netherlands. Wilson EO & William H Bossert WH. 1971. A Primer of Population Biology. Harvard University, USA. 
• Wratten SD & Fry GLA.1980. Field and Laboratory Exercises in Ecology. 
• Arnold, London. 

 

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INSECT PATHOLOGY

Theory 

• UNIT I 
• History of insect pathology, infection of insects by bacteria, fungi, viruses, protozoa, rickettsiae, spiroplasma and nematodes. 
• UNIT II 
• Epizootiology, symptomatology and etiology of diseases caused by the above and the factors controlling these. Defense mechanisms in insects against pathogens. 
• UNIT III 
• Examples of successful instances of exploitation of pathogens for pest management and mass production techniques of pathogens. Safety and registration of microbial pesticides. Use of insect pathogens in integrated management of insect pests. 

 

Practical 

• Familiarization with equipment used in insect pathology laboratory. Identification of different groups of insect pathogens and symptoms of infection. Isolation, culturing and testing pathogenicity of different groups of pathogens. Testing Koch’s postulates. Estimation of pathogen load. Extraction of pathogens from live organisms and soil. Bioassays to determine median lethal doses. 
• Suggested Readings 
• Boucias DG & Pendland JC. 1998. Principles of Insect Pathology. Kluwer Academic Publisher, Norwel. 
• Burges HD & Hussey NW. (Eds). 1971. Microbial Control of Insects and Mites. Academic Press, London. 
• Steinhaus EA. 1984. Principles of Insect Pathology. Academic Press, London. 

 

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BIOLOGICAL CONTROL OF CROP PESTS AND WEEDS

Theory 

• UNIT I 
• History, principles and scope of biological control; important groups of parasitoids, predators and pathogens; principles of classical biological control- importation, augmentation and conservation. 
• UNIT II 
• Biology, adaptation, host seeking behaviour of predatory and parasitic groups of insects. Role of insect pathogenic nematodes, viruses, bacteria, fungi, protozoa etc., their mode of action. Biological control of weeds using insects. 
• UNIT III 
• Mass production of quality biocontrol agents- techniques, formulations, economics, field release/application and evaluation. 
• UNIT IV 
• Successful biological control projects, analysis, trends and future possibilities of biological control. Importation of natural enemies- Quarantine regulations, biotechnology in biological control. 
• Semiochemicals in biological control. 

 

Practical 

• Identification of common natural enemies of crop pests (parasitoids, predators, microbes) and weed killers. Visits (only where logistically feasible) to bio-control laboratories to learn rearing and mass production of egg, egg-larval, larval, larval-pupal and pupal parasitoids, common predators, microbes and their laboratory hosts, phytophagous natural enemies of weeds. Field collection of parasitoids and predators. Hands-on training in culturing, identification of common insect pathogens. Quality control and registration standards for biocontrol agents. 

 

Suggested Readings 

• Burges HD & Hussey NW. (Eds). 1971. Microbial Control of Insects and Mites. Academic Press, London. 
• De Bach P. 1964. Biological Control of Insect Pests and Weeds. Chapman & Hall, New York. 
• Dhaliwal GS & Arora R. 2001. Integrated Pest Management: Concepts and Approaches. Kalyani Publ., New Delhi. 
• Gerson H & Smiley RL. 1990. Acarine Biocontrol Agents – An Illustrated Key and Manual. Chapman & Hall, New York. 
• Huffaker CB & Messenger PS. 1976. Theory and Practices of Biological Control. Academic Press, London. 
• Ignacimuthu SS & Jayaraj S. 2003. Biological Control of Insect Pests. 
• Phoenix Publ., New Delhi. 
• Saxena AB. 2003. Biological Control of Insect Pests. Anmol Publ., New Delhi. 
• Van Driesche & Bellows TS. Jr. 1996. Biological Control. Chapman & Hall, New York. 

 

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TOXICOLOGY OF INSECTICIDES 

Theory 

• UNIT I 
• Definition and scope of insecticide toxicology; history of chemical control; pesticide use and pesticide industry in India. 
• UNIT II 
• Classification of insecticides and acaricides based on mode of entry, mode of action and chemical nature. Structure and mode of action of organochlorines, organophosphates, carbamates, pyrethroids, tertiary amines, neonicotinoids, oxadiazines, phenyl pyrozoles, new promising compounds, etc. 
• UNIT III 
• Principles of toxicology; evaluation of insecticide toxicity; joint action of insecticides- synergism, potentiation and antagonism; factors affecting toxicity of insecticides; insecticide compatibility, selectivity and phytotoxicity. 
• UNIT IV 
• Insecticide metabolism; pest resistance to insecticides; mechanisms and types of resistance; insecticide resistance management and pest resurgence. UNIT V 
• Insecticide residues, their significance and environmental implications. Insecticide Act, registration and quality control of insecticides; safe use of insecticides; diagnosis and treatment of insecticide poisoning. 

 

Practical 

• Insecticide formulations and mixtures; quality control of pesticide formulations; laboratory and field evaluation of bioefficacy of insecticides; bioassay techniques; probit analysis; evaluation of insecticide toxicity and joint action. Toxicity to beneficial insects. Pesticide appliances. Working out doses and concentrations of pesticides; visit to toxicology laboratories. Good laboratory practices. 

 

Suggested Readings 

• Chattopadhyay SB. 1985. Principles and Procedures of Plant Protection. 
• Oxford & IBH, New Delhi. 
• Gupta HCL.1999. Insecticides: Toxicology and Uses. Agrotech Publ., Udaipur. 
• Ishaaya I & Degheele (Eds.). 1998. Insecticides with Novel Modes of Action. Narosa Publ. House, New Delhi. 
• Matsumura F. 1985. Toxicology of Insecticides. Plenum Press, New York. Perry AS, Yamamoto I, Ishaaya I & Perry R. 1998. Insecticides in Agriculture and Environment. Narosa Publ. House, New Delhi. 
• Prakash A & Rao J. 1997. Botanical Pesticides in Agriculture. Lewis Publ., New York. 

 

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PLANT RESISTANCE TO INSECTS

Theory 

• UNIT I 
• History and importance of resistance, principles, classification, components, types and mechanisms of resistance. 
• UNIT II 
• Insect-host plant relationships; theories and basis of host plant selection in phytophagous insects. 
• UNIT III 
• Chemical ecology, tritrophic relations, volatiles and secondary plant substances; basis of resistance. Induced resistance - acquired and induced systemic resistance. 
• UNIT IV 
• Factors affecting plant resistance including biotypes and measures to combat them. 
• UNIT V 
• Screening techniques; breeding for insect resistance in crop plants; exploitation of wild plant species; gene transfer, successful examples of resistant crop varieties in India and world. 
• UNIT VI 
• Role of biotechnology in plant resistance to insects. 

 

Practical 

• Screening techniques for measuring resistance; measurement of plant characters and working out their correlations with plant resistance; testing of resistance in important crops; bioassay of plant extracts of susceptible/resistant varieties; demonstration of antibiosis, tolerance and antixenosis. 

 

Suggested Readings 

• Dhaliwal GS & Singh R. (Eds). 2004. Host Plant Resistance to Insects - Concepts and Applications. Panima Publ., New Delhi. 
• Maxwell FG & Jennings PR. (Eds). 1980. Breeding Plants Resistant to Insects. John Wiley & Sons, New York. 
• Painter RH.1951. Insect Resistance in Crop Plants. MacMillan, London. 
• Panda N & Khush GS. 1995. Plant Resistance to Insects. CABI, London. Smith CM. 2005. Plant Resistance to Arthropods – Molecular and Conventional Approaches. Springer, Berlin. 

 

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PRINCIPLES OF INTEGRATED PEST MANAGEMENT 

Theory 

• UNIT I 
• History and origin, definition and evolution of various related terminologies. 
• UNIT II 
• Concept and philosophy, ecological principles, economic threshold concept, and economic consideration. 
• UNIT III 
• Tools of pest management and their integration- legislative, cultural, physical and mechanical methods; pest survey and surveillance, forecasting, types of surveys including remote sensing methods, factors affecting surveys; political, social and legal implications of IPM; pest risk analysis; pesticide risk analysis; cost-benefit ratios and partial budgeting; case studies of successful IPM programmes. 

 

Practical 

• Characterization of agro-ecosystems; sampling methods and factors affecting sampling; population estimation methods; crop loss assessmentdirect losses, indirect losses, potential losses, avoidable losses, unavoidable losses. Computation of EIL and ETL; crop modeling; designing and implementing IPM system. 

 

Suggested Readings 

• Dhaliwal GS & Arora R. 2003. Integrated Pest Management – Concepts and Approaches. Kalyani Publ., New Delhi. 
• Dhaliwal GS, Singh R & Chhillar BS. 2006. Essentials of Agricultural Entomology. Kalyani Publ., New Delhi. 
• Flint MC & Bosch RV. 1981. Introduction to Integrated Pest Management. 
• 1st Ed., Springer, New York. 
• Horowitz AR & Ishaaya I. 2004. Insect Pest Management: Field and Protected Crops. Springer, New Delhi. 
• Ignacimuthu SS & Jayaraj S. 2007. Biotechnology and Insect Pest Management. Elite Publ., New Delhi. 
• Metcalf RL & Luckman WH. 1982. Introduction of Insect Pest Management. John Wiley & Sons, New York. 
• Pedigo RL. 2002. Entomology and Pest Management. 4th Ed. Prentice Hall, New Delhi. 
• Norris RF, Caswell-Chen EP & Kogan M. 2002. Concepts in Integrated Pest Management. Prentice Hall, New Delhi. 
• Subramanyam B & Hagstrum DW. 1995. Integrated Management of Insects in Stored Products. Marcel Dekker, New York. 

 

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PESTS OF FIELD, HORTICULTURAL AND PLANTATION CROPS AND STORAGE ENTOMOLOGY 

Theory 

• Systematic position, identification, distribution, host-range, bionomics, nature and extent of damage, seasonal abundance and management of insect and mite pests and vectors. 
• UNIT I 
• Insect pests of cereals and millets and their management. Polyphagous pests: grasshoppers, locusts, termites, white grubs, hairy caterpillars, and non-insect pests (mites, birds, rodents, snails, slugs etc.). 
• UNIT II 
• Insect pests of pulses, tobacco, oilseeds and their management. 
• UNIT III 
• Insect pests of fibre crops, forages, sugarcane and their management. 
• UNIT IV 
• Fruit Crops- mango, guava, banana, jack, papaya, pomegranate, litchi, grapes, ber, fig, citrus, aonla, pineapple, apple, peach and other temperate fruits. 
• UNIT V 
• Vegetable crops- tomato, potato, radish, carrot, beetroot, cole crops, french beans, chow-chow, brinjal, okra, all gourds, gherkin, drumstick, leafy vegetables etc. 
• UNIT VI 
• Plantation crop- coffee, tea, rubber, coconut, arecanut, cashew, cocoa etc.; Spices and Condiments- pepper, cardamom, clove, nutmeg, chillies, turmeric, ginger, beetlevine etc. 
• UNIT VII 
• Ornamental, medicinal and aromatic plants and pests in polyhouses/protected cultivation. 
• UNIT VIII 
• Introduction, history of storage entomology, concepts of storage 
• entomology and significance of insect pests. Post-harvest losses in toto visà- vis total production of food grains in India. Scientific and socio-economic factors responsible for grain losses. 
• UNIT IX 
• Important pests namely insects, mites, rodents, birds and microorganisms associated with stored grain and field conditions including agricultural products; traditional storage structures; association of stored grain insects with fungi and mites, their systematic position, identification, distribution, host range, biology, nature and extent of damage, role of field and cross infestations and natural enemies, type of losses in stored grains and their effect on quality including biochemical changes. 
• UNIT X 
• Ecology of insect pests of stored commodities/grains with special emphasis on role of moisture, temperature and humidity in safe storage of food grains and commodities. Stored grain deterioration process, physical and biochemical changes and consequences. Grain storage- types of storage structures i.e., traditional, improved and modern storage structures in current usage. Ideal seeds and commodities’ storage conditions. 
• UNIT XI 
• Important rodent pests associated with stored grains and their non-chemical and chemical control including fumigation of rat burrows. Role of bird pests and their management. Control of infestation by insect pests, mites and microorganisms. Preventive measures- Hygiene/sanitation, disinfestations of stores/receptacles, legal methods. Curative measures- Non-chemical control measures- ecological, mechanical, physical, cultural, biological and engineering. Chemical control- prophylactic and curative- Characteristics of pesticides, their use and precautions in their handling with special emphasis on fumigants. Integrated approaches to stored grain pest management. 

 

Practical 

• Field visits, collection and identification of important pests and their natural enemies; detection and estimation of infestation and losses in different crops; study of life history of important insect pests and non-insect pest. Collection, identification and familiarization with the stored grains/seed insect pests and nature of damage caused by them; detection of insect infestation in stored food grains; estimation of losses in stored food grains; determination of moisture content in stored food grains; familiarization of storage structures, demonstration of preventive and curative measures including fumigation techniques; treatment of packing materials and their effect on seed quality. Field visits to save grain campaign, central warehouse and FCI warehouses and institutions engaged in research or practice of grain storage like CFTRI, IGSMRI, Hapur etc. (only where logistically feasible). 

 

Suggested Readings 

• Atwal AS, Dhaliwal GS & David BV. 2001. Elements of Economic Entomology. Popular Book Depot, Chennai. 
• Dhaliwal GS, Singh R & Chhillar BS. 2006. Essentials of Agricultural Entomology. Kalyani Publ., New Delhi. 
• Dunston AP. 2007. The Insects: Beneficial and Harmful Aspects. Kalyani Publ., New Delhi 
• Evans JW. 2005. Insect Pests and their Control. Asiatic Publ., New Delhi. 
• Nair MRGK. 1986. Insect and Mites of Crops in India. ICAR, New Delhi. Prakash I & Mathur RP. 1987. Management of Rodent Pests. ICAR, New Delhi. 
• Saxena RC & Srivastava RC. 2007. Entomology at a Glance. Agrotech Publ. Academy, Jodhpur. 
• Atwal AS & Dhaliwal GS. 2002. Agricultural Pests of South Asia and their Management. Kalyani Publ., New Delhi. 
• Butani DK & Jotwani MG. 1984. Insects and Vegetables. Periodical Expert Book Agency, New Delhi. 
• Dhaliwal GS, Singh R & Chhillar BS. 2006. Essential of Agricultural Entomology. Kalyani Publ., New Delhi. 
• Srivastava RP.1997. Mango Insect Pest Management. International Book Distr., Dehra Dun. 
• Verma LR, Verma AK & Goutham DC. 2004. Pest Management in Horticulture Crops : Principles and Practices. Asiatech Publ., New Delhi. 
• Hall DW. 1970. Handling and Storage of Food Grains in Tropical and Subtropical Areas. FAO. Agricultural Development Paper No. 90 and FAO, Plant Production and Protection Series No. 19, FAO, Rome. 
• Jayas DV, White NDG & Muir WE. 1995. Stored Grain Ecosystem. 
• Marcel Dekker, New York. 
• Khader V. 2004. Textbook on Food Storage and Preservation. Kalyani Publ., New Delhi. 
• Khare BP. 1994. Stored Grain Pests and Their Management. Kalyani Publ., New Delhi. 
• Subramanyam B & Hagstrum DW. 1995. Interrelated Management of Insects in Stored Products. Marcel Dekker, New York. 

 

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INSECT VECTORS OF PLANT VIRUSES AND OTHER PATHOGENS 

Theory 

• UNIT I 
• History of developments in the area of insects as vectors of plant pathogens. Important insect vectors and their characteristics; mouth parts and feeding processes of important insect vectors. Efficiency of transmission. 
• UNIT II 
• Transmission of plant viruses and fungal pathogens. Relation between viruses and their vectors. 
• UNIT III 
• Transmission of plant viruses by aphids, whiteflies, mealy bugs and thrips. UNIT IV 
• Transmission of mycoplasma and bacteria by leaf hoppers and plant hoppers. 
• UNIT V 
• Transmission of plant viruses by psyllids, beetles and mites. Epidemiology and management of insect transmitted diseases through vector management. 

 

Practical 

• Identification of common vectors of plant pathogens- aphids, leafhoppers, whiteflies, thrips, beetles, nematodes; culturing and handling of vectors; demonstration of virus transmission through vectors- aphids, leafhoppers and whiteflies. 

 

Suggested Readings 

• Basu AN. 1995. Bemisia tabaci (Gennadius) - Crop Pest and Principal Whitefly Vector of Plant Viruses. Oxford & IBH, New Delhi. 
• Harris KF & Maramarosh K. (Eds.).1980. Vectors of Plant Pathogens. 
• Academic Press, London. 
• Maramorosch K & Harris KF. (Eds.). 1979. Leafhopper Vectors and Plant Disease Agents. Academic Press, London. 
• Youdeowei A & Service MW. 1983. Pest and Vector Management in the Tropics. English Language Books Series, Longman, London. 

 

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COMMERCIAL ENTOMOLOGY 

Theory 

• UNIT I 
• Bee keeping- General colony management during different seasons. Seasonal management. Managing colonies for honey production and pollination. Artificial queen rearing. Pests and diseases of honey bees. Bee poisoning. Production and marketing of quality honey and value added honey products. Establishment and maintenance of apiaries. 
• UNIT II 
• Study of different species of silkworms, characteristic features, moriculture, silk and its uses, pests and diseases of silkworms, rearing and management of silkworms. Lac insect- natural enemies and their management. 
• UNIT III 
• Economic and public health importance of insect pests in human habitation and habitats, biology, damage and control of mosquitoes, houseflies, bed bugs, ants, termites, cockroaches, flies, silverfish, head and body lice, carpet beetles, cloth moths, crickets, wasps, house dust mites, insect pests of cattle, poultry, pet animals and their management. 
• UNIT IV 
• Principles and methods of pest management in residential places and public buildings, insecticides for domestic use and their safety, pre- and postconstruction termite proofing of buildings, appliances for domestic pest control. Rodent control methods. Organic methods of domestic pest management. 

 

Practical 

• Assessing pest status in dwellings (labs, canteen or hostel), implementation of pest control against flies, mosquitoes, bed bugs, cockroaches and rodents. Pre- and post-construction termite proofing methods, control of silverfishes in the library. Visit to poultry units and assessing pest status in poultries. Evaluation of commercially available domestic insect pest control products through bioassays. Identification of honey bee species, bee castes and special adaptations, identification and handling of bee-keeping equipments. Handling of honey bees-hive and frame inspection. Honey extraction and processing methods of hive products extraction. Preparation of bee-keeping projects for funding. Visit to bee nursery and commercial apiaries. Silkworm rearing and management. Lac host and crop management technology and processing of lac. Products and bye-products of lac. 

 

Suggested Readings 

• Aruga H. 1994. Principles of Sericulture. Oxford & IBH, New Delhi. 
• Atwal AS. 2006. The World of the Honey Bee. Kalyani Publ., New Delhi. Ganga G. 2003. Comprehensive Sericulture. Vol. II. Silkworm Rearing and Silk Reeling. Oxford & IBH, New Delhi. 
• Parthiban S & David BV. 2007. Management of Household Pests and Public Health Pests. Namratha Publ., Chennai. 
• Singh S. 1975. Beekeeping in India. ICAR, New Delhi. 

 

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IMMATURE STAGES OF INSECTS 

Theory 

• UNIT I 
• Types of immature stages in insect orders, morphology of egg, nymph/larva and pupa, identification of different immature stages of crop pests and stored product insects 
• UNIT II 
• Comparative study of life history strategies in hemi-metabola and holometabola, immature stages as ecological and evolutionary adaptations, significance of immature stages for pest management. 

 

Practical 

• Types of immature stages; their collection, rearing and preservation. Identification of immature insects to orders and families, in endopterygote orders viz., Diptera, Lepidoptera, Hymenoptera and Coleoptera using key. 

 

Suggested Readings 

• Chu HF. 1992. How to Know Immature Insects. William Brown Publ., Iowa. 
• Peterson A. 1962. Larvae of Insects. Ohio University Press, Ohio. 
• Stehr FW. 1998. Immature Insects. Vols. I, II. Kendall Hunt Publ., Iowa. 

 

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INSECT BEHAVIOUR 

Theory 

• UNIT I 
• Defining Behaviour- Concept of umwelt, instinct, fixed action patterns, imprinting, complex behaviour, inducted behaviour, learnt behaviour and motivation. History of Ethology- development of behaviorism and ethology, contribution of Darwin, Frisch, Tinbergen and Lorenz; Studying behaviour- Proximate and Ultimate approaches, behavioural traits under natural selection, genetic control of behaviour and behavioural polymorphism. 
• UNIT II 
• Orientation- Forms of primary and secondary orientation including taxes and kinesis; Communication- primary and secondary orientation, responses to environmental stimuli, role of visual, olfactory and auditory signals in inter- and intra-specific communication, use of signals in defense, mimicry, polyphenism; evolution of signals. 
• UNIT III 
• Reproductive behaviour- mate finding, courtship, territoriality, parental care, parental investment, sexual selection and evolution of sex ratios;
• Social behaviour- kin selection, parental manipulation and mutualism; Selforganization and insect behaviour. 
• UNIT IV 
• Foraging- Role of different signals in host searching (plant and insects) and host acceptance, ovipositional behaviour, pollination behaviour, coevolution of plants and insect pollinators. Behaviour in IPM- Concept of super-normal stimuli and behavioural manipulation as potential tool in pest management, use of semio-chemicals, auditory stimuli and visual signals in pest management. 

 

Practical 

• Quantitative methods in sampling behaviour; training bees to artificial feeders; sensory adaptation and habituation in a fly or butterfly model, physical cues used in host selection in a phytophagous insect, chemical and odour cues in host selection in phytophagous insect (DBM or gram pod borer), colour discrimination in honey bee or butterfly model, learning and memory in bees, role of self-organization in resource tracking by honeybees. Evaluation of different types of traps against fruit flies with respect to signals; Use of honey bees/Helicoverpa armigera to understand behavioural polymorphism with respect to learning and response to pheromone mixtures, respectively. 
• Suggested Readings 
• Ananthakrishnan TN. (Ed.). 1994. Functional Dynamics of Phytophagous Insects. Oxford & IBH, New Delhi. 
• Awasthi VB. 2001. Principles of Insect Behaviour. Scientific Publ., Jodhpur. 
• Bernays EA & Chapman RF. 1994. Host-Plant Selection by Phytophagous Insects. Chapman & Hall, London. 
• Brown LB. 1999. The Experimental Analysis of Insect Behaviour. Springer, Berlin. 
• Krebs JR & Davies NB. 1993. An Introduction to Behavioural Ecology. 3rd Ed. Chapman & Hall, London. 
• Manning A & Dawkins MS. 1992. An Introduction to Animal Behaviour. 
• Cambridge University Press, USA. 
• Mathews RW & Mathews JR. 1978. Insect Behaviour. A Wiley- InterScience Publ. John Wiley & Sons, New York. 

 

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RECENT TRENDS IN BIOLOGICAL CONTROL 

Theory 

• UNIT I 
• Scope of classical biological control and augmentative biocontrol; introduction and handling of natural enemies; nutrition of entomophagous insects and their hosts, dynamics of biocontrol agents vis-à-vis target pest populations. 
• UNIT II 
• Mass culturing techniques, insectary facilities and equipments, basic standards of insectary, viable mass-production unit, designs, precautions, good insectary practices. 
• UNIT III 
• Colonization, techniques of release of natural enemies, recovery evaluation, conservation and augmentation of natural enemies, survivorship analysis and ecological manipulations, large-scale production of biocontrol agents, bankable project preparation. 
• UNIT IV 
• Scope of genetically engineered microbes and parasitoids in biological control, genetics of ideal traits in biocontrol agents for introgressing and for progeny selections, breeding techniques of biocontrol agents. 

 

Practical 

• Mass rearing and release of some commonly occurring indigenous natural enemies; assessment of role of natural enemies in reducing pest populations; testing side effects of pesticides on natural enemies; effect of semiochemicals on natural enemies, breeding of various biocontrol agents, performance of efficiency analyses on target pests; project document preparation for establishing a viable mass-production unit /insectary. 

 

Suggested Readings 

• Burges HD & Hussey NW. (Eds.). 1971. Microbial Control of Insects and Mites. Academic Press, London. 
• Coppel HC & James WM. 1977. Biological Insect Pest Suppression. 
• Springer Verlag, Berlin. 
• De Bach P. 1964. Biological Control of Insect Pests and Weeds. Chapman & Hall, London. 
• Dhaliwal, GS & Koul O. 2007. Biopesticides and Pest Management. 
• Kalyani Publ., New Delhi. 
• Gerson H & Smiley RL. 1990. Acarine Biocontrol Agents – An Illustrated Key and Manual. Chapman & Hall, New York. 
• Huffaker CB & Messenger PS. 1976. Theory and Practices of Biological Control. Academic Press, London. 

 

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ADVANCED INSECTICIDE TOXICOLOGY 

Theory 

• UNIT I 
• Penetration and distribution of insecticides in insect systems; insecticide selectivity; factors affecting toxicity of insecticides. 
• UNIT II 
• Biochemical and physiological target sites of insecticides in insects; developments in biorationals, biopesticides and newer molecules; their modes of action and structural – activity relationships; advances in metabolism of insecticides. 
• UNIT III 
• Joint action of insecticides; activation, synergism and potentiation. 
• UNIT IV 
• Problems associated with pesticide use in agriculture: pesticide resistanceresistance mechanisms and resistant management strategies; pest
• resurgence and outbreaks; persistence and pollution; health hazards and other side effects. 
• UNIT V 
• Estimation of insecticidal residues- sampling, extraction, clean-up and estimation by various methods; maximum residue limits (MRLs) and their fixation; insecticide laws and standards, and good agricultural practices. 

 

Practical 

• Sampling, extraction, clean-up and estimation of insecticide residues by various methods; calculations and interpretation of data; biochemical and biological techniques for detection of insecticide resistance in insects. 

 

Suggested Readings 

• Busvine JR. 1971. A Critical Review on the Techniques for Testing Insecticides. CABI, London. 
• Dhaliwal GS & Koul O. 2007. Biopesticides and Pest Management. 
• Kalyani Publ., New Delhi. 
• Hayes WJ & Laws ER. 1991. Handbook of Pesticide Toxicology. 
• Academic Press, New York. 
• Ishaaya I & Degheele (Eds.). 1998. Insecticides with Novel Modes of Action. Narosa Publ. House, New Delhi. 
• Matsumura F. 1985. Toxicology of Insecticides. Plenum Press, New York. 
• O’ Brien RD. 1974. Insecticides Action and Metabolism. Academic Press, New York. 
• Perry AS, Yamamoto I, Ishaaya I & Perry R. 1998. Insecticides in Agriculture and Environment. Narosa Publ. House, New Delhi. 
• Prakash A & Rao J. 1997. Botanical Pesticides in Agriculture. Lewis Publ., New York. 

 

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ADVANCED HOST PLANT RESISTANCE 

Theory 

• UNIT I 
• Importance of plant resistance, historical perspective, desirable morphological, anatomical and biochemical adaptations of resistance; assembly of plant species - gene pool; insect sources – behaviour in relation to host plant factors. 
• UNIT II 
• Physical and chemical environment conferring resistance in plants, role of trypsin inhibitors and protease inhibitors in plant resistance; biochemistry of induced resistance – signal transduction pathways, methyl jasmonate pathways, polyphenol oxidase pathways, salicylic acid pathways; effects of induced resistance; exogenous application of elicitors. 
• UNIT III 
• Biotechnological approaches in host plant resistance- genetic manipulation of secondary plant substances; incorporation of resistant gene in crop varieties; marker-aided selection in resistance breeding. 
• UNIT IV 
• Estimation of plant resistance based on plant damage- screening and damage rating; evaluation based on insect responses; techniques and determination of categories of plant resistance; breakdown of resistance in crop varieties. 

 

Practical 

• Understanding mechanisms of resistance for orientation, feeding, oviposition etc., allelochemical bases of insect resistance; macroculturing of test insects like aphids, leaf/plant hoppers, mites and stored grain pests; field screening- microplot techniques, infester row technique, spreader row technique and plant nurseries; determination of antixenosis index, antibiosis index, tolerance index, plant resistance index. 

 

Suggested Readings 

• Panda N. 1979. Principles of Host Plant Resistance to Insects. Allenheld, Osum & Co., New York. 
• Rosenthal GA & Janzen DH. (Eds.). 1979. Herbivores – their Interactions with Secondary Plant Metabolites. Vol. I, II. Academic Press, New York. 
• Sadasivam S & Thayumanavan B. 2003. Molecular Host Plant Resistance to Pests. Marcel Dekker, New York. 
• Smith CM, Khan ZR & Pathak MD. 1994. Techniques for Evaluating Insect Resistance in Crop Plants. CRC Press, Boca Raton, Florida. 

 

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ADVANCED ACAROLOGY 

Theory 

• UNIT I 
• Comparative morphology of Acari, phylogeny of higher categories in mites, knowledge of commonly occurring orders and families of Acari in India. Diagnostic characteristics of commonly occurring species from families Tetranychidae, Tenuipalpidae, Eriophyidae, Tarsonemidae, 
• Phytoseiidae, Bdellidae, Cunaxidae, Stigmaeidae, Pymotidae, Cheyletidae, Acaridae, Pyroglyphidae, Orthogalumnidae, Argasidae, Ixodidae, Sarcoptidae. Soil mites in India. 
• UNIT II 
• Management of economical important species of mites in agriculture, veterinary and public health; storage acarology. 
• UNIT III 
• Mites as vectors of plant pathogens; mode of action, structure-activity relationships of different groups of acaricides; problem of pesticide resistance in mites, resurgence of mites. 
• UNIT IV 
• Predatory mites, their mass production and utilization in managing mite pests, acaropathogenic fungi- identification, isolation and utilization. 

 

Practical 

• Identification of commonly occurring mites up to species, preparation of keys for identification. Collection of specific groups of mites and preparing their identification keys. Rearing phytoseiid mites and studying their role in suppression of spider mites. Management of mite pests of crops using acaricides, phytoseiid predators, fungal pathogens etc. 

 

Suggested Readings 

• Evans GO.1992. Principles of Acarology. CABI, London. 
• Gerson H & Smiley RL. 1990. Acarine Biocontrol Agents- An Illustrated Key and Manual. Chapman & Hall, New York. 
• Gupta SK. 1985. Handbook of Plant Mites of India. Zoological Survey of India, Calcutta. 
• Krantz GW. 1970. A Manual of Acarology. Oregon State University Book Stores, Corvallis, Oregon. 
• Sadana GL. 1997. False Spider Mites Infesting Crops in India. Kalyani Publ. House, New Delhi. 

 

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MOLECULAR APPROACHES IN ENTOMOLOGICAL RESEARCH 

Theory 

• UNIT I 
• Introduction to molecular biology; techniques used in molecular biology. 
• UNIT II 
• DNA and RNA analysis in insects- transcription and translocation mechanisms. DNA recombinant technology, identification of genes/nucleotide sequences for characters of interest. Genetic improvement of natural enemies. Cell lines, genetic engineering in baculoviruses, Bt and entomopathogenic fungi. 
• UNIT III 
• Genes of interest in entomological research- marker genes for sex identification, neuropeptides, JH esterase, St toxins and venoms, chitinase, CPTI; lectins and proteases. Peptides and neuropeptides, JH esterase, St toxins and venoms, chitinase, Bt toxin, CPTI; trypsin inhibitors, lectins and proteases, neuropeptides. Transgenic plants for pest resistance and diseases. 
• UNIT IV 
• Insect gene transformation; biotechnology in relation to silkworms and honey bees; introduction of lectin genes for pest suppression; DNA finger printing for taxonomy and phylogeny. Genetic improvement of inebriate tolerance of natural enemies. 
• UNIT V 
• DNA-based diagnostics; insect immune systems in comparison to vertebrates; molecular basis of metamorphosis; Sf transgenic technology and implications; molecular biology of baculoviruses; insecticide resistance. Resistance management strategies in transgenic crops. 

 

Practical 

• Isolation of DNA/RNA; purity determinations; base pair estimation; agarose gel electrophoresis; restriction mapping of DNA; demonstration of PCR, RFLP and RAPD techniques. 

 

Suggested Readings 

• Bhattacharya TK, Kumar P & Sharma A. 2007. Animal Biotehnology. 1st Ed., Kalyani Publ., New Delhi. 
• Hagedon HH, Hilderbrand JG, Kidwell MG & Law JH. 1990. Molecular Insect Science. Plenum Press, New York. 
• Oakeshott J & Whitten MA.. 1994. Molecular Approaches to Fundamental and Applied Entomology. Springer Verlag. 
• Rechcigl JE & Rechcigl NA. 1998. Biological and Biotechnological Control of Insect Pests. Lewis Publ., North Carolina. 
• Roy U & Saxena V. 2007. A Hand Book of Genetic Engineering. 1st Ed., Kalyani Publ., New Delhi. 
• Singh BD. 2008. Biotechnology (Expanding Horizons). Kalyani Publ., New Delhi. 
• Singh P. 2007. Introductory to Biotechnology. 2nd Ed. Kalyani Publ., New Delhi. 

 

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ADVANCED INTEGRATED PEST MANAGEMENT 

Theory 

• UNIT I 
• Principles of sampling and surveillance; database management and computer programming, simulation techniques and system analysis and modeling. 
• UNIT II 
• Case histories of national and international programmes, their implementation, adoption and criticisms, global trade and risk of invasive pests. 
• UNIT III 
• Genetic engineering and new technologies- their progress and limitations in IPM programmes, deployment of benevolent alien genes for pest management- case studies; scope and limitations of bio-intensive and ecological based IPM programmes. Application of IPM to farmers’ realtime situations. 
• UNIT IV 
• Challenges, needs and future outlook; dynamism of IPM under changing cropping systems and climate; insect pest management under protected cultivation; strategies for pesticide resistance management. 

 

Suggested Readings 

• Dhaliwal GS & Arora R. 2003. Integrated Pest Management – Concepts and Approaches. Kalyani Publ., New Delhi. 
• Dhaliwal GS, Singh R & Chhillar BS. 2006. Essentials of Agricultural Entomology. Kalyani Publ., New Delhi. 
• Flint MC & Bosch RV. 1981. Introduction to Integrated Pest Management. 
• Springer, Berlin. 
• Koul O & Cuperus GW. 2007. Ecologically Based Integrated Pest Management. CABI, London. 
• Koul O, Dhaliwal GS & Curperus GW. 2004. Integrated Pest Management -Potential, Constraints and Challenges. CABI, London. Maredia KM, Dakouo D & Mota-Sanchez D. 2003. Integrated Pest Management in the Global Arena. CABI, London. 
• Metcalf RL & Luckman WH. 1982. Introduction of Insect Pest Management. John Wiley & Sons, New York. 
• Norris RF, Caswell-Chen EP & Kogan M. 2002. Concept in Integrated Pest Management. Prentice Hall, New Delhi. 
• Pedigo RL. 1996. Entomology and Pest Management. Prentice Hall, New Delhi. 
• Subramanyam B & Hagstrum DW. 1995. Integrated Management of Insects in Stored Products. Marcel Dekker, New York. 

 

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ENTOMOLOGY List of Journals 

• Agricultural and Forest Entomology- Royal Entomological Society, UK 
• Annual Review of Entomology- Paloatto, California, USA 
• Applied Soil Ecology- Elsevier Science, Amsterdam, The Netherlands 
• Biopesticides International- Koul Research Foundation, Jalandhar 
• Bulletin of Entomological Research- CAB International, Wallingford, UK 
• Bulletin of Grain Technology- Food Grain Technologist Res. Association of India, Hapur 
• Crop Protection- Elsevier’s Science, USA 
• Ecological Entomology -Royal Entomological Society, UK 
• Entomologia Experimentalis Applicata- Kluwer Academic Publishers, The Netherlands 
• Entomon- Association for Advancement of Entomology, Kerala 
• Environmental Entomology- Entomological Society of America, Maryland, USA 
• Indian Journal of Applied Entomology- Entomological Research Association, Udaipur 
• Indian Journal of Entomology- Entomological Society of India, New Delhi 
• Indian Journal of Plant Protection- Plant Protection Society of India,Hyderabad 
• Indian Journal of Sericulture- Central Silk Board, Bangalore 
• International Journal of Acarology- Indira Acarology Publishing House, Minessota, USA 
• International Journal of Pest Management- Taylor and Francis, UK 
• Journal of Acarology- Acarological Society of India, UAS, Bangalore 
• Journal of Apiculture Research- IBRA, UK 
• Journal of Applied Entomology- Blackwell Science Ltd., Oxford, UK 
• Journal of Biocontrol- Society for Biocontrol Advancement, Bangalore 
• Journal of Economic Entomology- Entomological Society of America, Maryland, USA 
• Journal of Entomological Research- Malhotra Publishing House, New Delhi 
• Journal of Insect Behaviour- Plenum Publishing Corporation, NY, USA Journal of Insect Physiology- Pergamon Press, UK 
• Journal of Insect Science- Indian Society for the Advancement of Insect Science, Ludhiana 
• Journal of Invertebrate Pathology, Elsevier Publ. Corporation, The Netherlands 
• Journal of Soil Biology and Ecology, Indian Society of Soil Biology and Ecology, UAS, Bangalore 
• Journal of Stored Products Research- Elsevier’s Science, USA 
• Pesticides Research Journal- Society of Pesticides Science, New Delhi 
• Pesticide Science – Oxford, London 
• Pesticide Biochemistry and Physiology- New York, USA 
• Physiological Entomology- Royal Entomological Society, UK 
• Review of Applied Entomology- CAB International, Wallingford, UK 
• Systematic Entomology- Royal Entomological Society, UK 

 

e-Resources 

• http://www.colostate.edu/Depts/Entomology/ 
• http://www.ent.iastate.edu/list/ 
• http://www.biologybrowser.org/ 
• http://www.teachers.ash.org.au/aussieed/insects.htm 
• http://entomology.si.edu/ 
• http://www.intute.ac.uk/healthandlifesciences/agriculture/ 
• http://www.agriculture.gov.au/ 
• http://www.gbif.org/ 
• http://www.mosquito.org/ 
• http://www.nysaes.cornell.edu/fst/faculty/acree/pheronet/index.html 
• http://medent.usyd.edu.au/links/links.htm 
• http://www.ent.iastate.edu/list/ 
• http://www.ento.csiro.au/index.html 
• http://www.biocollections.org/lib/listbycat.php?cat=Entomology 
• http://www.IPMnet.org/DIR/ 
• http://www.nhm.ac.uk/hosted_sites/acarology/ 
• http://www.agnic.org/ 
• http://ars-genome.cornell.edu/ 
• http://www.tulane.edu/~dmsander/garryfavweb.html
•  http://www.ufsia.ac.be/Arachnology/Arachnology.html 
• http://www.ippc.orst.edu/IPMdefinitions/home.html 
• http://www.ent.iastate.edu/list/ 
• http://www.ippc.orst.edu/cicp/pests/vertpest.htm 
• http://ipmwww.ncsu.edu/cicp/IPMnet_NEWS/archives.html
• http://nematode.unl.edu/wormsite.htm 
• http://www.bmckay.com/ 
• http://ace.ace.orst.edu/info/extoxnet/pips/pips.html 
• http://www.ifgb.uni-hannover.de/extern/ppigb/ppigb.htm
• http://www.ceris.purdue.edu/npirs/npirs.html 
• http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/pp/bluemold/ 
• http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu 
• http://ippc.orst.edu/pestalert/ 
• http://www.orst.edu/Dept/IPPC/wea/
• http://www.barc.usda.gov/psi/bpdl/bpdl.html 
• http://www.nalusda.gov/bic/BTTOX/bttoxin.htm 
• http://www.nysaes.cornell.edu/ent/biocontrol/ 
• http://entweb.clemson.edu/cuentres/ 
• http://www.agr.gov.sk.ca/Docs/crops/cropguide00.asp 
• http://www.caf.wvu.edu/kearneysville/wvufarm6.html 
• http://www.chebucto.ns.ca/Environment/NHR/lepidoptera.html 
• http://nt.ars-grin.gov/fungaldatabases/databaseframe.cfm 
• http://www.orst.edu/dept/infonet/ 
• http://www.attra.org/attra-pub/fruitover.html 
• http://www.ceris.purdue.edu/napis/pests/index.html 
• http://danpatch.ecn.purdue.edu/~epados/farmstead/pest/src/ 
• http://ipmwww.ncsu.edu/current_ipm/otimages.html 
• http://nematode.unl.edu/wormhome.htm 
• http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/ 
• http://hammock.ifas.ufl.edu/en/en.html 
• http://www.rce.rutgers.edu/weeddocuments/index.htm 
• http://www.agric.wa.gov.au/ento/allied1.htm 
• http://biology.anu.edu.au/Groups/MES/vide/refs.htm 
• http://chrom.tutms.tut.ac.jp/JINNO/PESDATA/00database.html 
• http://agrolink.moa.my/doa/english/croptech/crop.html 
• http://nbo.icipe.org/agriculture/stemborers/default.html 
• http://www.bdt.org.br 
• http://www.bspp.org.uk/fbpp.htm
• http://www.elsevier.com/inca/publications/store/3/5/6/
• http://www.hbz-nrw.de/elsevier/00207322/ 
• http://ianrhome.uni.edu/distanceEd/entomology/401_801_insectphysio.shtml 
• www.entsoc.org
• http://aprtc.org/ 
• http://www.ipmnet.org/news.html 
• http://www.pestnet.org/
• www.fruitfly.org 
• www.celera.com 
• www.hgsc.bcm.tmc.edu/drosophila 
• http://sdb.bio.purdue.edu/fly/aimain/links 
• http://flybase.bio.indiana.edu/ 
• http://naasindia.org/journals.htm 

 

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Suggested Broad Topics for Master’s and Doctoral Research 

• Strengthening of eco-friendly strategies of integrated insect and mite pest management including:
• Bio-rational pesticides 
• Host plant resistance 
• Transgenic crop protection 
• Judicious use of pesticides 
• Molecular biosystematics 
• Investigations on ecological factors including: 
• Survey and surveillance of insect and mite pests 
• Forecasting of insect and mite pest population life-tables and predictive models 
• Insect and mite biology 
• Population dynamics as influenced by abiotic and biotic factors 
• Studies on role of pollination including honeybees in increasing crop yields and production of honey and other allied products and management of honeybee diseases and mites 
• Pesticide resistance and Insecticide Resistance Management strategies 
• Biotypes of pests 
• Below ground biodiversity- Bio-indicator of soil health, role in decomposition of litter, soil physico-chemical properties 
• Bioprospecting for protocols, peptides, genes, insecticidal proteins and antibiotics 
• Climate change and pests 
• IPM in protected cultivation 
• Location specific IPM strategies in different cropping systems 
• Genetic improvement of natural enemies 
• Genetic improvement of silkworms 
• Refinement of silkworm rearing technology for different regions 
• Management of silkworm pests and diseases 
• Crop-pest modeling 
• Insect biochemistry- pheromones, hormones and neuropeptides 
• Insect physiology- metabolism and regulatory mechanisms. 
• Indigenous technology 
• Plants as sources of insecticides 
• Molecular systematics – finger printing of species 
• Insect systematics and phylogeny

 

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