author(s)
Khasru Alam, Harish Babu, Siraj Monir and V Sivaprasad

abstract
The prime objective of this study was to evaluate fourteen native strains of silkworm, Bombyx mori L., available with Regional Sericultural Research Station, Koraput based on different quantitative traits. Silkworm breeds like Kora1 to Kora10, SK6, SK7, BCon1 and BCon4 were evaluated under the study in three main crops (May-June 2020; July-August 2020; October-November 2020) in Koraput conditions Odisha. The rearing performances of the breeds were documented for analysis and multiple trait evaluation index values were utilized to determine the best performing breed. Six breeds (Kora1, Kora2, Kora3, Kora6, Kora7 and Kora9) has performed very well under Koraput conditions with mean EI values >50. The result indicated that there were considerable variations with respect to the different cocoon and associated characters amongst the evaluated breeds in different seasons. Two breeds namely Kora2 and Kora10 has scored average EI values >50 for the maximum of 6 individual traits viz., fecundity, hatching%, cocoon yield by weight and number, single shell weight, shell ratio, particularly with respect to mean performance of the breeds. Therefore the identified breeds can be used as resource materials in various silkworms breeding programme for synthesis of superior season and region specific hybrids.