Environmental Entomology (1997) 26, 1247-1257

T.M. Withers, M.O. Harris and C. Madie (1997)
Dispersal of mated Hessian flies (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae) in field arrays of host and nonhost plants
Environmental Entomology 26 (6), 1247-1257
Abstract: The movement of ovipositing female Hessian flies, Mayetiola destructor (Say) , was investigated using 2 different field release techniques. The 1st technique experiment 1) indirectly measured female movement between patches of wheat, Triticum aestivum L., by recording the spatial distribution of resulting larval infestations. Females laid eggs in wheat patches at all distances (1-27 m) from the release patch. The 2nd technique (experiments 2 and 3) directly measured movement of adult females and involved release of females into circular plant arrays of either host (wheat) or nonhost oat, Avena sativum L., and their recapture at different times after and at different distances from release. Recapture percentages decreased from 78 to 15% as the duration between release and recapture increased and were lower in the nonhost (oat) compared with host (wheat) arrays. The greater recapture of females from host arrays than from nonhost arrays indicate that females disperse at a greater rate through arrays of nonhost plants. Mathematical models were used to explore dispersal patterns of females in host and nonhost arrays over time. Simple random diffusion models did not describe the data adequately because a proportion of the released individuals dispersed farther than was predicted. An alternative model incorporating these faster dispersing individuals is proposed. Dispersal of females in field arrays supported predictions made from previous experiments in which female movement was quantified in smaller arrays in a greenhouse.
(The abstract is excluded from the Creative Commons licence and has been copied with permission by the publisher.)
Database assignments for author(s): Toni May Withers, Marion O. Harris

Research topic(s) for pests/diseases/weeds:
general biology - morphology - evolution
population dynamics/ epidemiology

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Pest and/or beneficial records:

Beneficial	Pest/Disease/Weed	Crop/Product	Country	Quarant.
	Mayetiola destructor	Wheat (Triticum)