Applied Entomology and Zoology (2004) 39, 235-241

Runzhi Zhang, Li Ren, Chunlin Wang, Ronghua Lin and Changyan Tian (2004)
Cotton aphid predators on alfalfa and their impact on cotton aphid abundance
Applied Entomology and Zoology 39 (2), 235-241
Abstract: In 2000 and 2001, studies were carried out to evaluate the influence of predators on the cotton aphid, Aphis gossypii Glover (Homoptera: Aphididae), in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China, where alfalfa was mainly planted as an intercrop with cotton. There were 25 species of predators observed from June to August; 16 species of predators were caught in both cotton and alfalfa. Predators were classified into five groups: predatory beetles, lacewings, predatory bugs, syrphid flies and spiders. The total number of predators in alfalfa was 2.45 times and 20% more than that in cotton, in 2000 and 2001, respectively. In an alfalfa-cutting experiment, it was found that predators increased significantly faster in cotton bordering the alfalfa-cutting treatment than in the non-cut control, and the growth of the cotton aphid population was delayed in a cotton field adjacent to the treatment compared to that adjacent to the control. This indicates that alfalfa-cutting induces predator immigration into adjacent cotton fields and helps control cotton aphids. The impact of alfalfa cutting on predators and cotton aphids was evident for about 14 days.
(The abstract is excluded from the Creative Commons licence and has been copied with permission by the publisher.)
Full text of article
Database assignments for author(s): Runzhi Zhang

Research topic(s) for pests/diseases/weeds:
biocontrol - natural enemies
environment - cropping system/rotation

---

Pest and/or beneficial records:

Beneficial	Pest/Disease/Weed	Crop/Product	Country	Quarant.
	Aphis gossypii	Cotton (Gossypium)	China (NW)