Dear Sreenivasagan,

Thank you firstly for your question.

In the seed beetle Callosobruchus maculatus, a pest of storage legumes, egg laying abilities are affected by the temperature the female experiences during oviposition. If the female is given a choice between cold and warm environments, she may lay fewer but larger eggs in the cold and in contrast more egg numbers that are smaller  in size at warmer environments. I have read that at higher temperatures physiological processes of the females are stretched to the extent that quality is definitely compromised, i.e. trade-offs. Heat treatment has been a widely used technique especially in granaries where the problems of infestations are commonplace.

On a different note, I have some across some studies that have applied a coat of biological agent (e.g. neem oil) to hamper oviposition and this in turn influences the mating behaviour of the female as in C. maculatus, if the female is denied good sites for oviposition then she refuses to remate.

Papers by Charles Fox are really important if you really want to understand this. He, I feel is a very good reference to have and explains them very well in his papers. (http://www.uky.edu/~cfox/Pubs/). 

Best wishes,

Ram

You can consider how trap crops can be used  to avoid oviposition in crop of interest.

 You can find your answer in these websites http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2132971

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9491361

http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPage=online&aid=8557403

Sir

Use leaves of Peppermint, Mentha avensis plant and covers the top 5 cm layer of stored grain (post harvest products) by said treatment, u will definitely avoid oviposition and damage by/due to stored grain pests in storage. 

Well, thank you Ramakrishna, Zala, Ramos & Marta for your updates. My question is certainly broad in nature.

semiochemicals (oviposition attractants & repellents) their role in influencing the physiology of females and their behavior was the focus, which can be utilized for IPM.