Longtailed mealybug - Fecundity

Early research on longtailed mealybugs indicated that fecund females produced, on average, 13 young per day for 16 days, with an individual maximum of 37 young per day and a maximum of 321 offspring. More recent studies of longtailed mealybugs raised on potatoes gave average egg production peaking at 186 eggs/female at 25°C but falling to 43 at 30°C. The adult females matured their eggs (pre-oviposition period) for an average 25 days at 20°C and then eggs were laid for an average of 34 days at this temperature. Fecundity of longtailed mealybug appears, therefore, to be generally in the range of 100-200 eggs/female.

Location Conditions   Eggs per female     Range
U.S.A. (1915)     average = 208     up to 321
Australia? (1937)     about 100      
Egypt (1974) laboratory 20°C   average = 124      
  laboratory 25°C   average = 186      
  laboratory 27°C   average = 121      
  laboratory 30°C   average = 43      
Australia (1976) laboratory and field
observations		   about 100      
             
             

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