| The effect of nine pollen grains on life table parameters of Neoseiulus cucumeris (Acari: Phytoseiidae) |
| Paper ID : 1066-IPCA4 |
| Authors |
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Niloofar Afsharinejad *1, Hamidreza Hagiqanbar2, Yaghoub Fathipour2 1Departemant of Entomology, Faculty of Agriculture, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran 2Department of Entomology, Faculty of Agriculture, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran |
| Abstract |
| Phytoseiid mites (Acari: Mesostigmata: Phytoseiidae) are important biological control agents of small arthropod pests such as spider mites, thrips and whiteflies. One of the predatory phytoseiid mites with a higher potential for using in management of greenhouse pests is Neoseiulus cucumeris (Oudemans). Different pollen grains are used as alternative or supplementary food for rearing predatory mites. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of some plant pollen grains as a diet on performance of the predatory mite N. cucumeris. In the present study, nine different pollen grains including Panicum miliaceum, Punica granatum, Eruca sativa, Chenopodium album, Chaenomeles cathayensis, Lagerstroemia speciosa, Datura stramonium, Caesalpinia gilliesii and Hibiscus rosa-sinensis were used as a main food source. All experiments were conducted at 25±1°C, 65±5% RH and 16:8 h (L:D) photoperiod. Experiments were performed in a completely randomized design on an artificial substrate (9×7×4 cm plastic container, a sponge 6×4×2 cm and a plastic plate) and the cohort consisted of 80 individuals (egg). The predatory mite was able to survive to maturity and reproduction on all pollen grains except H. rosa-sinensis and L. speciose. These two pollen grains caused 100% mortality of mites before adult stage. The shortest pre-adult period (7 days) was on P. granatum pollen. The longest (70 days) and shortest (27 days) total lifespan of females were recorded on D. stramonium and P. granatum pollen grains, respectively. Total fecundity ranged from 44.72 eggs (on D. stramonium pollen) to 0.16 eggs per female (on P. miliaceum pollen). The longest (25.50 days) and shortest (1 day) oviposition days were observed when the predator mites fed on Ch. cathayensis and P. miliaceum pollen grains, respectively. The intrinsic rate of increase was between 0.162 day -1 (on D. stramonium) to -0.097 day -1 (on P. miliaceum). The net reproductive rate (R0) and gross reproductive rate (GRR) were not significantly different on D. stramonium, Ch. cathayensis and C. gilliesii pollen grains. The highest and lowest R0 were 29.43 and 0.07 eggs/individual that observed on the D. stramonium and P. miliaceum pollen grains, respectively. The highest r, finite rate of increase (λ) and R0 were recorded on D. stramonium pollen (0.162 day-1, 0.176 day-1 and 29.43 eggs/individual, respectively). According to obtained results of the present study, in the absence or lack of the main prey in the environment, the pollen of D. stramonium can be suggested as an alternative or supplementary food. |
| Keywords |
| Alternative diet, Mass rearing, phytoseiid mites, biological control, demography |
| Status: Abstract Accepted (Poster Presentation) |