Mating Competitiveness of Male (Smith) Irradiated by X-rays.

, an invasive pest, has a huge impact on food production in Asia and Africa. The potential and advantages of sterile insect techniques for the permanent control of have been demonstrated, but the methods for their field application are still unavailable. For the purposes of this study, male pupae of were irradiated with an X-ray dose of 250 Gy to examine the effects of both the release ratio and the age of the irradiated males on the sterility of their offspring. The control effect of the irradiated male release ratio on was evaluated using field-cage experiments in a cornfield. The results showed that when the ratio of irradiated males to non-irradiated males reached 12:1, the egg-hatching rate of the offspring of decreased to less than 26%, and there was also no significant difference in mating competitiveness among the different ages. Field-cage testing showed that when irradiated males were released at ratios of 12:1-20:1 to normal males, the leaf protection effect for the corn reached 48-69% and the reduction in the insect population reached 58-83%. In this study, an appropriate release ratio is suggested, and the mating competitiveness of irradiated and non-irradiated males of is investigated, thus providing a theoretical basis for the use of sterile insect techniques to control .