Bulletin of Entomological Research (2021) 111, 733-740

Laura Verónica Mena-Mociño, Samuel Pineda, Ana Mabel Martínez, Luis Jesús Palma-Castillo, Benjamín Gómez-Ramos, Elisa Viñuela and José Isaac Figueroa (2021)
Effects of sex ratio on different biological parameters of Engytatus varians (Distant) (Hemiptera: Miridae) adults and their offspring: prey preference for Bactericera cockerelli (Sulcer) (Hemiptera: Triozidae)
Bulletin of Entomological Research 111 (6), 733-740
Abstract: In the present study, the influence of three sex ratios (1:1, 1:2, and 1:3; female:male) of the mirid Engytatus varians (Distant) (Hemiptera) on different biological parameters and on its offspring was evaluated. The prey preference of different developmental stages of this predator for different nymphal instars (N) of Bactericera cockerelli (Sulcer) (Hemiptera: Triozidae) was also evaluated. The fertility was significantly higher (24 nymphs/female) in the 1:3 sex ratio than in the 1:1 and 1:2 sex ratios (14 and 16 nymphs/female, respectively). The females in the 1:1 and 1:2 sex ratios lived 1.14 and 1.43 days more (27 and 28 days, respectively) than those in the 1:3 sex ratio (26 days). The nymphs derived from the females of the three sex ratios (first filial generation, F₁) had five instars and a duration of 17 or 18 days. The ratio of the F₁ generation females was not affected by the sex ratio of their parents. In choice tests, independent of whether the preys were placed on a single or multiple tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) leaflets, the consumption of females and males and N₃, N₄, and N₅ nymphs of E. varians on B. cockerelli, generally showed the order of N₂>N₃>N₄>N₅. In conclusion, the findings revealed in this study can help to improve the rearing methodology for increasing populations of E. varians. In addition, they can serve as a guideline for releasing this predator in times when there is an abundance of early instar nymphs of B. cockerelli.
(The abstract is excluded from the Creative Commons licence and has been copied with permission by the publisher.)
Link to article at publishers website
Database assignments for author(s): Elisa Viñuela

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

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Pest and/or beneficial records:

Beneficial	Pest/Disease/Weed	Crop/Product	Country	Quarant.
	Bactericera cockerelli	Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum)
Engytatus varians (predator)	Bactericera cockerelli