St. Joseph's College, Devagiri

About: St. Joseph's College, Devagiri is a based out in . It is known for research contribution in the topics: Dung beetle & Scarabaeinae. The organization has 61 authors who have published 71 publications receiving 778 citations. The organization is also known as: St. Joseph's College.

Food preferences of the rubber plantation litter beetle, Luprops tristis, a nuisance pest in rubber tree plantations.

Abstract: Massive invasion of the litter dwelling beetle, Luprops tristis Fabricius (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae), numbering about 0.5 to 4 million per residential building following summer showers, and their prolonged stay in a state of dormancy, make them an extreme nuisance in rubber tree plantation belts of the Western Ghats in south India. Food preference of post-dormancy adults, larvae and teneral adults stages towards tender, mature and senescent leaves were assessed in three choice and no choice leaf disc tests. All stages have strong preference towards fallen tender leaves and lowest preference towards senescent leaves indicating that leaf age is a major attribute determining food selection and food preference of L. tristis. Ready availability of the preferred, prematurely fallen, tender rubber tree leaves as a food resource is suggested as being responsible for the exceptionally high abundance of L. tristis in rubber tree plantation belts.

Inventory with disaster

Abstract: We Consider a continuous review (s,S) inventory system in which commodities are damaged due to decay and disaster. Demands for items follow Poisson process and the life times of an item and the times between the disasters exponential. Assuming no shortages and zero lead time, transient and steady state probabilities on inventory levels are derived. Optimization is discussed with numerical illustrations

Defensive glands in the adult and larval stages of the darkling beetle, Luprops tristis

Abstract: Invasion by large populations of the litter-dwelling darkling beetle Luprops tristis Fabricius (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae) following the short spell of summer rains during April, and their extended state of dormancy is a regular event in rubber plantation habitats in south-western India. Strong smelling secretions of the beetle cause blisters on skin of human beings. Such secretions appear defensive because they appear to facilitate their avoidance by other predatory organisms. Defensive glands in the larvae and adults of L. tristis are described, as well as the mode of eversion of the glands. The glands in larvae consist of two pairs of noneversible glands in a conical depression on the 2nd and 3rd sternites, whereas in adults only one pair occurs between 7th and 8th sternal segments. These glands may be a major reason for avoidance of larvae and adults by their natural enemies and their very high numbers in the litter of rubber plantations.

Cloud Forest Dung Beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabaeinae) in the Western Ghats, a Global Biodiversity Hotspot in Southwestern India:

Abstract: First-time comprehensive data on the community structure, species composition and regional endemism of dung beetle assemblage in a tropical montane cloud forest (TMCF) from South Asia is provided. ...