Original paper

Effects of four non-crop plants on life history traits of the lady beetle Harmonia axyridis

Wang, Yusha; Yao, Fengluan; Soares, Marianne A.; Basiri, Shirin E.; Amiens-Desneux, Edwige; Campos, Mateus R.; Lavoir, Anne-Violette; Desneux, Nicolas

Entomologia Generalis Volume 40 Number 3 (2020), p. 243 - 252

published: Nov 3, 2020
published online: Sep 29, 2020
manuscript accepted: May 10, 2020
manuscript revision received: Mar 1, 2020
manuscript revision requested: Feb 3, 2020
manuscript received: Nov 24, 2019

DOI: 10.1127/entomologia/2020/0933

BibTeX file

ArtNo. ESP146004003002, Price: 29.00 €

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Abstract

Non-crop plants are important for the fitness and abundance of coccinellids in conservation biological control. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the impact of four frequently used non-crop plant species in habitat management, i.e., Vicia sativa (Fabaceae), Fagopyrum esculentum (Polygonaceae), Coriandrum sativum (Apiaceae) and Calendula officinalis (Asteraceae) on the longevity, prey consumption, weight and fecundity of the multicolored Asian ladybeetle Harmonia axyridis (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae). Under laboratory conditions, provision of V. sativa, F. esculentum and C. sativum significantly increased longevity, but only F. esculentum significantly reduced daily weight loss of adult females compared to water only (when no prey was provided). Feeding on plant food resources from these non-crop plants reduced prey consumption and, with the exception of V. sativa, greatly decreased daily weight gain of both adult females and males in the presence of Ephestia kuehniella eggs. Feeding H. axyridis females with both non-crop plants and aphids had no effect on the pre-oviposition period when compared with aphids only. However, the presence of C. sativum led to an increase of H. axyridis fecundity, whereas presence of C. officinalis led to a 22% decrease in ladybeetle fecundity (when compared to the treatment with only aphids). Vicia sativa, F. esculentum and especially C. sativum showed benefits on the survival and/or reproduction of H. axyridis and may be candidates for non-crop plants that are used to diversify agro-ecosystems to boost biological control. Calendula officinalis, however, could be intercropped as a companion plant in H. axyridis-invaded areas to enhance the competitiveness of native biological control agents (pending C. officinalis does not impact negatively these species).

Keywords

floral food • conservation biological control • longevity • fecundity • weight • predation