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Wen X, Gao G. Effects of Temperature and Extraguild Prey Density on Intraguild Predation of Coccinella septempunctata and Harmonia axyridis. INSECTS 2025; 16:62. [PMID: 39859643 PMCID: PMC11766171 DOI: 10.3390/insects16010062] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/18/2024] [Revised: 01/09/2025] [Accepted: 01/09/2025] [Indexed: 01/27/2025]
Abstract
The ladybirds Coccinella septempunctata and Harmonia axyridis are important biocontrol agents for the small walnut aphid Chromaphis juglandicola, a key walnut pest. C. juglandicola outbreaks occur in walnut orchards, and walnut yields have declined. Intraguild predation (IGP) is prevalent among natural enemies that coexist in shared habitats and prey upon the same extraguild prey. We designed laboratory experiments to evaluate the potential for IGP between these two ladybirds at different temperatures and extraguild (EG) prey densities, and the ability of IGP to control EG prey under different conditions. We measured IGP rates in first instar larvae, female adults, and male adults (both starved for 24 h) in the vulnerable immature life stages of two ladybird eggs. Intraguild (IG) prey (H. axyridis eggs or C. septempunctata eggs) and EG prey (C. juglandicola) consumption were tallied after 24 h. Temperature and EG prey density influenced IGP rates, with temperature contributing the most to the variance. IGP increased with increasing temperature (15-35 °C), with both factors interactively influencing the EG prey consumption rate and exhibiting highly significant effects. EG prey consumption increased with temperature and density. This research provides theoretical support for the rational use of H. axyridis and C. septempunctata in the joint biological control of C. juglandicola.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Guizhen Gao
- Research Centre for Green Prevention and Control Technology of Forestry Pest, College of Forestry and Landscape Architecture, Xinjiang Agricultural University, Urumqi 830052, China;
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Cicero L, Chavarín-Gómez LE, Pérez-Ascencio D, Barreto-Barriga O, Guevara R, Desneux N, Ramírez-Romero R. Influence of Alternative Prey on the Functional Response of a Predator in Two Contexts: With and without Intraguild Predation. INSECTS 2024; 15:315. [PMID: 38786871 PMCID: PMC11122098 DOI: 10.3390/insects15050315] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2024] [Revised: 04/25/2024] [Accepted: 04/26/2024] [Indexed: 05/25/2024]
Abstract
In biological control, joint releases of predators and parasitoids are standard. However, intraguild predation (IGP) can occur when a predator attacks a parasitoid, potentially affecting pest control dynamics. In addition to the focal prey (FP), Trialeurodes vaporariorum, the intraguild predator (IG-predator) Geocoris punctipes can consume the parasitoid Eretmocerus eremicus (IG-prey). In this IGP context with multiple prey, an alternative prey (AP), like the aphid Myzus persicae, may influence interactions. Theory predicts that, in simple interactions, a predator's functional response (FR) to the FP changes with the presence of an AP. However, whether this holds in an IGP context is unknown. In this study, we empirically tested that prediction. Our results show that without IGP, G. punctipes exhibits a generalized FR with and without AP. Nevertheless, with IGP, the predator exhibited a Type II FR at low and high AP densities, increasing pressure on the FP and potentially favoring short-term biological control strategies. However, when 25 AP were offered, the predator's response shifted, underscoring the importance of monitoring AP densities to prevent potential disruptions in FP control. In both contexts, the increase in AP produced a handling time increase and a decrease in consumption rate. These results indicate that the theoretical prediction of the effect of AP on the FR is met only under specific conditions, and the complexity of multitrophic interactions must be considered.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lizette Cicero
- Laboratorio de Ecología Aplicada al Control Biológico (ECOBI), Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones Forestales, Agrícolas y Pecuarias (INIFAP), Mexico City 04010, Mexico;
| | - Luis Enrique Chavarín-Gómez
- Laboratorio de Control Biológico (LabCB-AIFEN), Departamento de Producción Agrícola, CUCBA, Universidad de Guadalajara, Guadalajara 44100, Mexico; (L.E.C.-G.); (D.P.-A.); (O.B.-B.)
| | - Daniela Pérez-Ascencio
- Laboratorio de Control Biológico (LabCB-AIFEN), Departamento de Producción Agrícola, CUCBA, Universidad de Guadalajara, Guadalajara 44100, Mexico; (L.E.C.-G.); (D.P.-A.); (O.B.-B.)
| | - Ornella Barreto-Barriga
- Laboratorio de Control Biológico (LabCB-AIFEN), Departamento de Producción Agrícola, CUCBA, Universidad de Guadalajara, Guadalajara 44100, Mexico; (L.E.C.-G.); (D.P.-A.); (O.B.-B.)
| | - Roger Guevara
- Red de Biología Evolutiva, Instituto de Ecología, A.C., Xalapa 91070, Mexico;
| | - Nicolas Desneux
- Université Côte d’Azur, INRAE, CNRS, 06903 Sophia-Antipolis, France
| | - Ricardo Ramírez-Romero
- Laboratorio de Control Biológico (LabCB-AIFEN), Departamento de Producción Agrícola, CUCBA, Universidad de Guadalajara, Guadalajara 44100, Mexico; (L.E.C.-G.); (D.P.-A.); (O.B.-B.)
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Lopez LK, Cortez MH, DeBlieux TS, Menel IA, O'Brien B, Cáceres CE, Hall SR, Duffy MA. A healthy but depleted herd: Predators decrease prey disease and density. Ecology 2023:e4063. [PMID: 37186234 DOI: 10.1002/ecy.4063] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/03/2022] [Revised: 03/21/2023] [Accepted: 04/06/2023] [Indexed: 05/17/2023]
Abstract
The healthy herds hypothesis proposes that predators can reduce parasite prevalence and thereby increase density of their prey. However, evidence for such predator-driven reductions in prevalence in prey remains mixed. Furthermore, even less evidence supports increases in prey density during epidemics. Here, we used a planktonic predator-prey-parasite system to experimentally test the healthy herds hypothesis. We manipulated density of a predator (the phantom midge, Chaoborus punctipennis) and parasitism (the virulent fungus Metschnikowia bicuspidata) in experimental assemblages. Because we know natural populations of the prey (Daphnia dentifera) vary in susceptibility to both predator and parasite, we stocked experimental populations with nine genotypes spanning a broad range of susceptibility to both enemies. Predation significantly reduced infection prevalence, eliminating infection at the highest predation level. However, lower parasitism did not increase densities of prey; instead, prey density decreased substantially at the highest predation levels (a major density cost of healthy herds predation). This density result was predicted by a model parameterized for this system. The model specifies three conditions for predation to increase prey density during epidemics: (i) predators selectively feed on infected prey, (ii) consumed infected prey release fewer infectious propagules than unconsumed prey, and (iii) sufficiently low infection prevalence. While the system satisfied the first two conditions, prevalence remained too high to see an increase in prey density with predation. Low prey densities caused by high predation drove increases in algal resources of the prey, fueling greater reproduction, indicating that consumer-resource interactions can complicate predator-prey-parasite dynamics. Overall, in our experiment, predation reduced prevalence of a virulent parasite but, at the highest levels, also reduced prey density. Hence, while healthy herds predation is possible under some conditions, our empirical results make it clear that manipulation of predators to reduce parasite prevalence may harm prey density. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura K Lopez
- Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Michael H Cortez
- Department of Biological Science, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL, USA
| | | | - Ilona A Menel
- School of Integrative Biology, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, USA
| | - Bruce O'Brien
- Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Carla E Cáceres
- School of Integrative Biology, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, USA
| | - Spencer R Hall
- Department of Biology, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, USA
| | - Meghan A Duffy
- Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
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Bemisia tabaci on Vegetables in the Southern United States: Incidence, Impact, and Management. INSECTS 2021; 12:insects12030198. [PMID: 33652635 PMCID: PMC7996905 DOI: 10.3390/insects12030198] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2021] [Revised: 02/12/2021] [Accepted: 02/13/2021] [Indexed: 01/25/2023]
Abstract
Simple Summary The sweetpotato whitefly, Bemisia tabaci, was initially discovered in the United States in 1894 but was not considered an economic insect pest on various agricultural crops across the southern and western states. After the introduction of B. tabaci Middle East-Asia Minor 1 (MEAM1) into the United States around 1985, the insect rapidly spread throughout the Southern United States to Texas, Arizona, and California. Extreme field outbreaks occurred on vegetable and other crops in those areas. The sweetpotato whitefly is now regarded as one of the most destructive insect pests in vegetable production systems in the Southern United States. The direct and indirect plant damage caused by B. tabaci has led to substantial economic losses in vegetable crops. Bemisia tabaci outbreaks on vegetables in Georgia resulted in significant economic losses of 132.3 and 161.2 million US dollars (USD) in 2016 and 2017, respectively. Therefore, integrated pest management (IPM) tactics are warranted, including cultural control by manipulation of production practices, resistant vegetable varieties, biological control using various natural enemies, and the judicious use of insecticides. Abstract Bemisia tabaci Gennadius (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) is among the most economically important insect pests of various vegetable crops in the Southern United States. This insect is considered a complex of at least 40 morphologically indistinguishable cryptic species. Bemisia tabaci Middle East-Asia Minor 1 (MEAM1) was initially introduced in the United States around 1985 and has since rapidly spread across the Southern United States to Texas, Arizona, and California, where extreme field outbreaks have occurred on vegetable and other crops. This pest creates extensive plant damage through direct feeding on vegetables, secreting honeydew, causing plant physiological disorders, and vectoring plant viruses. The direct and indirect plant damage in vegetable crops has resulted in enormous economic losses in the Southern United States, especially in Florida, Georgia, and Texas. Effective management of B. tabaci on vegetables relies mainly on the utilization of chemical insecticides, particularly neonicotinoids. However, B. tabaci has developed considerable resistance to most insecticides. Therefore, alternative integrated pest management (IPM) strategies are required, such as cultural control by manipulation of production practices, resistant vegetable varieties, and biological control using a suite of natural enemies for the management of the pest.
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Zeng B, Wang S, Li Y, Xiao Z, Zhou M, Wang S, Zhang D. Effect of long-term cold storage on trehalose metabolism of pre-wintering Harmonia axyridis adults and changes in morphological diversity before and after wintering. PLoS One 2020; 15:e0230435. [PMID: 32191747 PMCID: PMC7082016 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0230435] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2019] [Accepted: 03/01/2020] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Harmonia axyridis is a major bio-control agent of pests in agriculture and forest ecosystems. It is also a globally important invasive insect species. To test whether dark elytra colour is associated with greater cold hardiness, we compared the survival rate of prolonged cold exposure in both yellow and black colour morphs of female and male H. axyridis. We determined the trehalose and glycogen content, trehalase activity, and the dynamics of genes associated with the trehalose metabolic pathway. Yellow forms predominated before winter began, however black forms increased from 11.15 to 30.46% after overwintering. There was no significant difference in trehalose content between the females and males during overwintering. Glycogen content in over-wintering yellow females and black males increased significantly, while it decreased in black females. Soluble trehalase activity increased significantly in all the insects except black females. Membrane-bound trehalase activity increased in black males, and decreased in black females. Trehalose and glycogen content and trehalase activity were regulated by differential expression of TRE and TPS genes. Female beetles weighed more than males and survived in low temperatures for longer periods of time, regardless of elytra colour, suggesting that mass is a stronger predictor of overwintering survival rather than colour morph. Our results provide a guide for comparing cold resistance in insects and a theoretical basis for cold storage of H. axyridis for use as natural enemies of pests in biological control programs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Boping Zeng
- School of Biological and Agricultural Science and Technology, Zunyi Normal University, Zunyi, Guizhou, China
| | - Shasha Wang
- College of Life and Environmental Sciences, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Yan Li
- College of Life and Environmental Sciences, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Zhongjiu Xiao
- School of Biological and Agricultural Science and Technology, Zunyi Normal University, Zunyi, Guizhou, China
| | - Min Zhou
- College of Life and Environmental Sciences, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Shigui Wang
- College of Life and Environmental Sciences, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Daowei Zhang
- School of Biological and Agricultural Science and Technology, Zunyi Normal University, Zunyi, Guizhou, China
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Zhang QL, Wang F, Guo J, Deng XY, Chen JY, Lin LB. Characterization of ladybird Henosepilachna vigintioctopunctata transcriptomes across various life stages. Sci Data 2018; 5:180093. [PMID: 29870033 PMCID: PMC5987669 DOI: 10.1038/sdata.2018.93] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/28/2017] [Accepted: 03/27/2018] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Henosepilachna vigintioctopunctata is a vegetable pest that has spread worldwide. It belongs to the Coccinellidae family, whose members exhibit remarkable diversity, both in terms of their diets and the colored spots that appear on the elytra in the adult stage. Transcriptomic data from H. vigintioctopunctata at different life stages would be useful for further investigating the genetic basis of this dietary diversity and the formation of the colored spots in ladybird beetles, as well as revealing the population dynamics of H. vigintioctopunctata, which could be useful in pest control. Here, we generated a comprehensive RNA-seq data set (a total of ~24 Gb of clean data) for H. vigintioctopunctata by sequencing samples collected at different life stages. We characterized the transcriptomes of each of the four life stages (egg, larva, pupa, adult) and generated a high-coverage pool by combining all the RNA-seq reads. Furthermore, we identified a catalog of simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers. This represents the first study to collect transcriptome data from all life stages of a ladybird beetle.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qi-Lin Zhang
- Faculty of Life Science and Technology, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming 650500, China
- State Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, School of Life Science, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, China
| | - Feng Wang
- Faculty of Life Science and Technology, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming 650500, China
| | - Jun Guo
- Faculty of Life Science and Technology, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming 650500, China
| | - Xian-Yu Deng
- Faculty of Life Science and Technology, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming 650500, China
| | - Jun-Yuan Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, School of Life Science, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, China
- LPS, Nanjing Institute of Geology and Paleontology, CAS, Nanjing 210008, China
| | - Lian-Bing Lin
- Faculty of Life Science and Technology, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming 650500, China
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Ben Abdelkrim A, Hattab T, Fakhfakh H, Belkadhi MS, Gorsane F. A landscape genetic analysis of important agricultural pest species in Tunisia: The whitefly Bemisia tabaci. PLoS One 2017; 12:e0185724. [PMID: 28972992 PMCID: PMC5626470 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0185724] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2017] [Accepted: 09/18/2017] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Combining landscape ecology and genetics provides an excellent framework to appreciate pest population dynamics and dispersal. The genetic architectures of many species are always shaped by environmental constraints. Because little is known about the ecological and genetic traits of Tunisian whitefly populations, the main objective of this work is to highlight patterns of biodiversity, genetic structure and migration routes of this pest. We used nuclear microsatellite loci to analyze B. tabaci populations collected from various agricultural areas across the country and we determine their biotype status. Molecular data were subsequently interpreted in an ecological context supplied from a species distribution model to infer habitat suitability and hereafter the potential connection paths between sampling localities. An analysis of landscape resistance to B. tabaci genetic flow was thus applied to take into account habitat suitability, genetic relatedness and functional connectivity of habitats within a varied landscape matrix. We shed light on the occurrence of three geographically delineated genetic groups with high levels of genetic differentiation within each of them. Potential migration corridors of this pest were then established providing significant advances toward the understanding of genetic features and the dynamic dispersal of this pest. This study supports the hypothesis of a long-distance dispersal of B. tabaci followed by infrequent long-term isolations. The Inference of population sources and colonization routes is critical for the design and implementation of accurate management strategies against this pest.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ahmed Ben Abdelkrim
- Laboratoire de Génétique Moléculaire, Immunologie et Biotechnologie. Faculté des Sciences de Tunis, Université Tunis El Manar, Tunis, Tunisie
- Institut Jacques Monod, CNRS UMR 7592, Université Paris Diderot, Sorbonne Paris Cité, Paris, France
| | - Tarek Hattab
- Institut Français de Recherche pour l’Exploitation de la Mer, IFREMER, UMR 248 MARBEC, Avenue Jean Monnet CS, Sète, France
| | - Hatem Fakhfakh
- Laboratoire de Génétique Moléculaire, Immunologie et Biotechnologie. Faculté des Sciences de Tunis, Université Tunis El Manar, Tunis, Tunisie
- Faculté des Sciences de Bizerte, Zarzouna, Université de Carthage, Bizerte, Tunisie
| | | | - Faten Gorsane
- Laboratoire de Génétique Moléculaire, Immunologie et Biotechnologie. Faculté des Sciences de Tunis, Université Tunis El Manar, Tunis, Tunisie
- Faculté des Sciences de Bizerte, Zarzouna, Université de Carthage, Bizerte, Tunisie
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