European Journal of Entomology (2018) 115, 232-241

Pengxiang Wu, Jing Zhang, Muhammad Haseeb, Shuo Yan, Lambert Kanga and Runzhi Zhang (2018)
Functional responses and intraspecific competition in the ladybird Harmonia axyridis (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) provided with Melanaphis sacchari (Homoptera: Aphididae) as prey
European Journal of Entomology 115, 232-241
Abstract: Functional responses at each developmental stage of predators and intraspecific competition associated with direct interactions among them provide insights into developing biological control strategies for pests. The functional responses of Harmonia axyridis (Pallas) at each developmental stage of Melanaphis sacchari (Zehntner) and intraspecific competition among predators were evaluated under laboratory conditions. The results showed that all stages of H. axyridis displayed a type II functional response to M. sacchari. Based on Holling's disc equation, the instantaneous searching rates were highest (a) and handling time was shortest (T_h) of fourth instar larvae (a = 0.8818; T_h = 3.9 min) and female adults (a = 0.9881; T_h = 3.0 min) at larval and adult stages, respectively. The coefficients of mutual interference (m) assessed by the intraspecific competition equation were higher for fourth instar larvae (m = 0.4764) and female adults (m = 0.4183). The present study indicates that fourth instar and female adult were more effective stages of H. axyridis in the context of biological control but suitable predator densities need to be considered before natural enemy release.
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Full text of article
Database assignments for author(s): Runzhi Zhang, Muhammad Haseeb, Lambert H.B. Kanga

Research topic(s) for pests/diseases/weeds:
biocontrol - natural enemies
Research topic(s) for beneficials or antagonists:
general biology - morphology - evolution

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Pest and/or beneficial records:

Beneficial	Pest/Disease/Weed	Crop/Product	Country	Quarant.
	Melanaphis sacchari	Sorghum (crop)	U.S.A. (SE)
Harmonia axyridis (predator)	Melanaphis sacchari	Sorghum (crop)	U.S.A. (SE)