scholarly journals Functional response of Harmonia axyridis preying on Acyrthosiphon pisum nymphs: the effect of temperature

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yasir Islam ◽  
Farhan Mahmood Shah ◽  
Xu Rubing ◽  
Muhammad Razaq ◽  
Miao Yabo ◽  
...  

AbstractIn the current study, we investigated the functional response of Harmonia axyridis adults and larvae foraging on Acyrthosiphon pisum nymphs at temperatures between 15 and 35 °C. Logistic regression and Roger’s random predator models were employed to determine the type and parameters of the functional response. Harmonia axyridis larvae and adults exhibited Type II functional responses to A. pisum, and warming increased both the predation activity and host aphid control mortality. Female and 4th instar H. axyridis consumed the most aphids. For fourth instar larvae and female H. axyridis adults, the successful attack rates were 0.23 ± 0.014 h−1 and 0.25 ± 0.015 h−1; the handling times were 0.13 ± 0.005 h and 0.16 ± 0.004 h; and the estimated maximum predation rates were 181.28 ± 14.54 and 153.85 ± 4.06, respectively. These findings accentuate the high performance of 4th instar and female H. axyridis and the role of temperature in their efficiency. Further, we discussed such temperature-driven shifts in predation and prey mortality concerning prey-predator foraging interactions towards biological control.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yasir Islam ◽  
Farhan Mahmood Shah ◽  
Xu Rubing ◽  
Muhammad Razaq ◽  
Miao Yabo ◽  
...  

Abstract Functional response models are often used to understand the foraging interactions and determine the suitable biocontrol agents. We determined the functional response of Harmonia axyridis to nymph Acyrthosiphon pisum at different but constant temperatures (between 15 and 35 °C) and prey densities. Logistic regression and Roger’s random predator models were employed to determine the type and parameters of functional response. Harmonia axyridis larvae and adults exhibited Type II functional responses to different densities of A. pisum. Warming increased both the predation activity and host aphid control mortality. The 4th instar and female H. axyridis consumed the most aphids. Warming contributed markedly in accelerating the predator action. For fourth instar larvae and female H. axyridis adult, the successful attack rates were 0.234 ± 0.014 h−1 and 0.247 ± 0.015 h−1; the handling times were 0.132 ± 0.005 h and 0.156 ± 0.004 h; and the estimated maximum predation rates were 181.28 ± 14.54 and 153.85 ± 4.06, respectively. These findings accentuate the high performance of 4th instar and female H. axyridis and the role of temperature in their efficiency. Further studies exploring intraguild predation and mutual interference will be required to conclude the biocontrol potential of H. axyridis to A. pisum.


Author(s):  
Azadeh Farazmand ◽  
Masood Amir-Maafi

Abstract In this research, functional responses of Amblyseius swirskii Athias-Henriot preying on different Tetranychus urticae Koch nymphal densities (2, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64, and 128) were studied at eight constant temperatures (15, 20, 25, 27.5, 30, 32.5, 35 and 37.5°C) in a circular Petri dish (3-cm diameter × 1-cm height) under lab conditions. At all temperatures, the logistic regression showed a type II functional response. A nonlinear relationship was found between temperature and attack rate and the reciprocal of handling time. The reciprocal of handling time decreased exponentially with increasing temperature. In contrast, the attack rate grew rapidly with increasing temperatures up to an optimum, showing a decreasing trend at higher temperatures. In order to quantify the functional response of A. swirskii over a broad range of temperatures and to gain a better estimation of attack rate and handling time, a temperature-settled functional response equation was suited to our data. Our model showed that the number of prey consumed increased with rising prey density. Also, the predation rates increased with increasing temperatures but decreased at extremely high temperatures. Based on our model, the predation rate begins at the lower temperature threshold (11.73°C) and reaches its peak at upper temperature threshold (29.43°C). The coefficient of determination (R2) of the random predator model was 0.99 for all temperatures. The capability of A. swirskii to search and consume T. urticae over a wide range of temperatures makes it a good agent for natural control of T. urticae in greenhouses.


2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 70-76
Author(s):  
Julianne Milléo ◽  
Rafael de Andrade Moral ◽  
Francisco Sales Fernandes ◽  
Wesley Augusto Conde Godoy

Resumo. O presente estudo teve como objetivos avaliar a resposta funcional dos instares larvais e adultos de três espécies de coccinelídeos predadores [Harmonia axyridis (Pallas), Cycloneda sanguinea (Linnaeus) e Hippodamia convergens Guerin Meneville] em diferentes densidades de Brevicoryne brassicae (Linnaeus), comparando o desempenho da espécie invasora com as espécies locais. Observou-se que H. axyridis consumiu mais insetos que as outras espécies; o número de pulgões predados pelas três espécies de coccinelídeos aumentou com a troca do instares larvais e, que as fêmeas tenderam a predar mais pulgões que os machos. A voracidade das larvas de 4º instar é similar a dos adultos, às vezes até maior, como no caso da C. sanguinea. Exceto no 1º instar larval, todos os outros estágios de vida mostraram aumento do consumo de pulgões à medida que a oferta de presas aumenta. Os resultados mostraram que a resposta funcional do tipo III foi indicada apenas pelas larvas de 3º instar de H. axyridis e nas demais espécies e estágios avaliados a resposta funcional foi do tipo II. Em geral H. axyridis apresentou assíntotas das respostas funcionais mais elevadas em comparação com as espécies anteriormente estabelecidas. Entretanto, a diferença entre a magnitude das curvas de respostas funcionais entre a invasora e as espécies locais não é muito acentuada, o que pode indicar pouco impacto da invasora sobre a população de recursos no campo e, uma tendência a adaptação e estabilização entre estas espécies da comunidade intraguilda.Functional response compared between Harmonia axyridis (Pallas), Cycloneda sanguinea (Linnaeus) and Hippodamia convergens Guerin Meneville (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) fed on Brevicoryne brassicae (Linnaeus) (Hemiptera: Aphididae)Abstract. The study evaluated the functional response of larval instars and adult of three species of coccinellids predator [Harmonia axyridis (Pallas), Cycloneda sanguinea (Linnaeus) and Hippodamia convergens Guerin Meneville] in different densities of Brevicoryne brassicae (Linnaeus), comparing the performance of the invasive species with the local species. It was observed that H. axyridis consumed more insects than the other species; the number of aphids preyed by the three species of coccinellids increased with the exchange of larval instars and that females tended to prey more aphids than males. The voracity of the 4th instar larvae is similar to that of adults, sometimes even larger, as in the case of C. sanguinea. Except for the first larval instar, all other stages of life have shown increased aphid consumption as the supply of prey increases. The results showed that the functional response of type III was indicated only by the 3rd instar larvae of H. axyridis and in the other species and stages evaluated the functional response was type II. In general H. axyridis presented asymptotes of the highest functional responses in comparison to the previously established species. However, the difference between the magnitude of the functional response curves between the invasive and the local species is not very pronounced, which may indicate little impact of the invasive on the population of resources in the field and a tendency to adaptation and stabilization between these species of the intraguild community.


Insects ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 325
Author(s):  
Xing-Lin Yu ◽  
Rui Tang ◽  
Peng-Liang Xia ◽  
Bo Wang ◽  
Yi Feng ◽  
...  

Natural enemy guilds normally forage for prey that is patchily distributed simultaneously. Previous studies have investigated the influence of conspecific interactions and prey distribution on the functional response of natural enemies. However, little is known about how prey distribution and heterospecific interactions between natural enemies could affect their foraging efficiency. We examined the effects of prey distribution (aggregate and uniform) and heterospecific interactions on the functional response of a predator, Harmonia axyridis (Pallas) (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) and a parasitoid, Aphidius gifuensis Ashmead (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) to the green peach aphid, Myzus persicae (Sulzer) (Hemiptera: Aphididae). Type II functional responses were observed in all experiments. Functional response curves of single H. axyridis or A. gifuensis were higher in the aggregate treatment than in the uniform treatment when aphid densities were between 40–180 or 70–170, respectively. When comparing between aggregate and uniform treatments with the heterospecific enemy occurrence, no differences were found in the parasitism efficiency of A. gifuensis, while H. axyridis consumed more aphids in the aggregate treatment than in the uniform treatment when aphid densities were between 50–230. The functional response of individual H. axyridis was not affected by A. gifuensis under two aphid distributions. However, the functional response of a single A. gifuensis and the treatment when A. gifuensis concurrently with H. axyridis overlapped in uniform treatment of above approximately 150 aphids. Our results indicate that the predation rate of H. axyridis was affected by aphid distribution, but was not affected by heterospecific interactions. The parasitism rate of A. gifuensis was affected by aphid distribution, and by heterospecific interactions in both the aggregate and uniform treatments. Thus, to optimize the management efficiency of M. persicae, the combined use of H. axyridis and A. gifuensis should be considered when M. persicae is nearly uniformly distributed under relatively high density.


2020 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 55-65 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hong Lu ◽  
Junjie Zhu ◽  
Jinting Yu ◽  
Xiaofang Chen ◽  
Le Kang ◽  
...  

Symbiotic viruses exist in many insects; however, their functions in host insects are not well understood. In this study, we explored the role of acyrthosiphon pisum virus (APV) in the interaction of its host aphid Acyrthosiphon pisum with plants. APV is primarily located in aphid salivary glands and gut and propagated in the insect. APV is horizontally transmitted to host plants during aphid feeding, but the virus does not replicate in the host plant. When the pea host race of aphids colonized two low-fitness plants, Medicago truncatula and Vicia villosa, the virus titers in both the aphids and plants significantly increased. Furthermore, APV infection strongly promoted the survival rate of the pea host race on V. villosa. Transcriptomic analysis showed that only 0.85% of aphid genes responded to APV infection when aphids fed on V. villosa, with a fold change in transcript levels of no more than fourfold. The improved survival due to APV infection was apparently related to the inhibitory effect of the virus on levels of phytohormone jasmonic acid (JA) and JA-isoleucine. Our data suggest a benefit of the symbiotic virus to its aphid host and demonstrate a novel case of symbiotic virus-mediated three-species interaction.


2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Guizhen Gao ◽  
Siqi Liu ◽  
Likai Feng ◽  
Yuli Wang ◽  
Zhaozhi Lu

Abstract Background The walnut aphid species Chromaphis juglandicola Kalt. and Panaphis juglandis (Goeze) are destructive insect pests. Harmonia axyridis (Pall.) (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) is the main predatory insect with a wide geographical distribution. The feeding behavior of the predator against the two different aphid species might influence bio-control efficacy in walnut orchards. Main body Functional response of H. axyridis to various densities of the two aphid species was examined under temperatures ranging from 15 to 30 °C. The results showed that functional responses of H. axyridis towards C. juglandicola or P. juglandis fitted well with the Holling-II equation within the range of 15–30 °C. A greater biomass of aphids was consumed when the temperature increased from 15 to 30 °C. The predation efficacy of H. axyridis against C. juglandicola was greater than against P. juglandis, and the searching efficiency of H. axyridis against C. juglandicola was more effective than against P. juglandis. Moreover, predation rates against both aphid species decreased with increasing the H. axyridis density. Conclusion This study showed that H. axyridis was an effective predator against the two walnut aphids. Increasing temperature (15–30 °C) increased prey consumption. Interference between individuals from increasing predator density had a negative impact on predation rate against the two aphid species.


1994 ◽  
Vol 84 (1) ◽  
pp. 57-64 ◽  
Author(s):  
F. Pennacchio ◽  
M.C. Digilio ◽  
E. Tremblay ◽  
A. Tranfaglia

AbstractThe host preference and acceptance behaviour of populations of Aphidius ervi Haliday and A. microlophii Pennacchio & Tremblay from southern Italy was investigated. In no host-choice conditions, A. ervi females showed significantly higher attack and oviposition rates on the natural host Acyrthosiphon pisum (Harris) than on the non-host aphid Microlophium carnosum (Buckton)(Homoptera: Aphididae). In contrast, A. microlophii, which specifically parasitizes M. carnosum in the field, attacked both aphid species. However, dissections showed that oviposition of A. microlophii occurred only in a few of the attacked Acyrthosiphon pisum and was significantly less frequent than in M. carnosum. These results were confirmed in experimental host-choice conditions, suggesting that Aphidius microlophii oviposition is possibly regulated by a host haemolymphatic kairomone. Hybrids obtained by crossing A. ervi females with A. microlophii males attacked and oviposited in both aphid species, suggesting that these behavioural events have a strong genetic basis. The oviposition into host or non-host aphids did not elicit an immune defence reaction. The presence of the host's food-plant had no evident close-range effects on parasitoid attack and oviposition in non-host aphids. Aphidius microlophii reared on the non-host aphid Acyrthosiphon pisum produced a significant higher number of mummies after a few generations, suggesting a possible role of larval and early adult conditioning in the host selection process. These results, together with those from previous studies, suggest that Aphidius ervi is best considered as a complex of differentiated populations, characterized by a varying degree of genetic divergence.


Author(s):  
D. E. Newbury ◽  
R. D. Leapman

Trace constituents, which can be very loosely defined as those present at concentration levels below 1 percent, often exert influence on structure, properties, and performance far greater than what might be estimated from their proportion alone. Defining the role of trace constituents in the microstructure, or indeed even determining their location, makes great demands on the available array of microanalytical tools. These demands become increasingly more challenging as the dimensions of the volume element to be probed become smaller. For example, a cubic volume element of silicon with an edge dimension of 1 micrometer contains approximately 5×1010 atoms. High performance secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) can be used to measure trace constituents to levels of hundreds of parts per billion from such a volume element (e. g., detection of at least 100 atoms to give 10% reproducibility with an overall detection efficiency of 1%, considering ionization, transmission, and counting).


2001 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 48-55 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juan Botella ◽  
María José Contreras ◽  
Pei-Chun Shih ◽  
Víctor Rubio

Summary: Deterioration in performance associated with decreased ability to sustain attention may be found in long and tedious task sessions. The necessity for assessing a number of psychological dimensions in a single session often demands “short” tests capable of assessing individual differences in abilities such as vigilance and maintenance of high performance levels. In the present paper two tasks were selected as candidates for playing this role, the Abbreviated Vigilance Task (AVT) by Temple, Warm, Dember, LaGrange and Matthews (1996) and the Continuous Attention Test (CAT) by Tiplady (1992) . However, when applied to a sample of 829 candidates in a job-selection process for air-traffic controllers, neither of them showed discriminative capacity. In a second study, an extended version of the CAT was applied to a similar sample of 667 subjects, but also proved incapable of properly detecting individual differences. In short, at least in a selection context such as that studied here, neither of the tasks appeared appropriate for playing the role of a “short” test for discriminating individual differences in performance deterioration in sustained attention.


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