Comprehensive Review on the Bio-ecology and Integrated Management Strategies for Brinjal Shoot and Fruit Borer (Leucinodes orbonalis Guenee)

The most important and commonly grown vegetable for both raw and cooked purposes is brinjal, or Solanum melongena Linnaeus. It is a member of the solanaceae family and is also known as eggplant or baingan. Nevertheless, it faces significant threat from a prominent pest known as the eggplant shoot and fruit borer, scientifically termed Leucinodes orbonalis Guenee, capable of inflicting damage ranging from 37% to 100%. This pest can also diminish both the quantity and quality of eggplant produced. Farmers persist in depending on pesticides to address this problem; nevertheless, excessive pesticide application has resulted in negative impacts on the environment, unintended beneficial organisms, phytotoxicity, pesticide resistance, pest resurgence, bioaccumulation, and secondary pest outbreaks. In different regions of the world, it has been discovered that a number of insects, including Various pests such as the Fruit and Shoot Borer, White Fly, Leaf Hopper, Thrips, Mites, Leaf Roller, and Red Spider Mite contribute to losses in eggplant. Moreover, this insect can also cause severe harm to other vegetables within the Solanaceae family, acting as an alternative host. The adult insect can eventually withstand the problems of chemical pesticides and find it challenging to control the insect population in standing crops due to the larva's unique ability to subsist on a monophagous diet supported by homing and tunneling behavior. It results in a decrease in both yield and vitamin C content. This is due to the fact that high humidity and moderate temperatures encourage the population growth of the Brinjal Fruit and Shoot Borer, which results in significant losses in hot, humid weather. Farmers primarily use chemical insecticides, which they apply carelessly to manage this pest. A lot of farmers also employ biological control techniques and home-based remedies like marigold barriers, cow urine, ashes, and so forth. Farmers are unable to totally manage the infestation, though, and the measures cost more to produce than they really bring.