| Summary: | The host on which Oryzaephilus surinamensis choose to lay eggs and multiply can have a great
influence on their development. In this study, morphometric characterization has been used to
measure size variability of this insect pest reared in different types of culture and verify whether
the food preference has an impact on the morphology of the insect. Measurement of body
length, body width at the widest point, head width, length of antenna, length of thorax and
length of hind femur of 3rd generation of saw-toothed grain beetle from four cultures; barley,
rice, oat groat and dried maize were measured using stereoscopic microscope equipped with
LAS EZ imaging software. All data were analyzed using IBM SPSS. The present morphometry
study showed significant differences between populations thus proved that food preference or
host range choices play important role in development and growth of the insect. Significant
differences were recorded for body length (F = 8.250), body width at the widest point (F =
4.620), and head width (F = 4.300) at P < 0.05 among the cultures. Thus, body length, body
width at the widest point and head width were the most suitable measurements to be used in
observing the effect of food on O. surinamensis biological growth.
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