Abstract
The feeding preferences of the herbivore Spoladea recurvalis Fabricius (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) was determined through choice and no-choice tests in the laboratory with 12.7-mm leaf discs of the following weeds and crops: horse purslane (Trianthema portulacastrum L), common pigweed (Amaranthus dubius Mart.), botoncillo (Borreria ocymoides [Burm. F] DC), sugar beet (Beta vulgaris L.), sweet cherry pepper (Capsicum frutescens L.), tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.), cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.), and eggplant (Solanum melongena L.). Spoladea recurvalis preferred horse purslane as its primary food host plant. The pyralid larva also fed on leaf discs of common pigweed and sugar beet, the only vegetable crop serving as an alternate food plant. Larvae did not feed on the other plants studied (sweet cherry pepper, tomato, cucumber, eggplant and botoncillo), some of which were previously reported as alternate food host plants for the herbivore. This manuscript discusses the application of these findings for the biological control of horse purslane and the foraging behavior of S. recurvalis.