Journal of Plant Diseases and Protection (2008) 115, 114-121

A.M. Klueken, H.-M. Poehling and B. Hau (2008)
Attractiveness and host suitability of winter wheat cultivars for cereal aphids (Homoptera: Aphididae)
Journal of Plant Diseases and Protection 115 (3), 114-121
Abstract: Cereal aphids (Homoptera: Aphididae) yearly infest winter wheat occasionally leading to significant yield reduction when biotic and abiotic factors are optimal for rapid population growth. Within the host plant complex, influences of eight winter wheat cultivars on the development of cereal aphids was studied in a two-year project focussing on the most important species in terms of yield reduction. Therefore, antibiosis, aphid settlement behaviour, and the relation of infestation and yield loss were evaluated by observing the development of isolated aphids within clip cages, by estimating the natural infestation of alatae morphs, and by measuring yield parameters. The cultivar Hybnos I significantly reduced numbers of offspring of caged Metopolophium dirhodum and Sitobion avenae at seedling stages (growth stage 13, in laboratory) in comparison to other cultivars. During later stages such as shooting and flowering (in laboratory and fields, respectively), no significant differences in aphid development were observed among cultivars. During the period of immigration, alatae of Rhopalosiphum padi and S. avenae preferred to settle on Batis (on May 25) and Tommi (on June 10), respectively. At other evaluations, no significant differences were found among the cultivars and aphid species. Crop yield (kg per ha) and hectolitre weight (g per ccm) were significantly reduced with increasing aphid density in all cultivars, with highest reductions in cultivar Dekan. In contrast, only some cultivars showed significant reductions in protein content with increasing aphid density, while others were tolerant and not reacting to aphid infestation with respect to protein content. In summary, no striking indications for different aphid susceptibility could be found in the set of cultivars tested, even though they differed strongly in attributes such as colour, height, yield potential and development pattern. The results are discussed in terms of cultivar selection to improve sustainability of integrated pest management and the importance of cultivar features for aphid migration and population models.
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Database assignments for author(s): A. Michael Klueken, Hans-Michael Poehling

Research topic(s) for pests/diseases/weeds:
resistance/tolerance/defence of host

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Pest and/or beneficial records:

Beneficial	Pest/Disease/Weed	Crop/Product	Country	Quarant.
	Sitobion avenae	Wheat (Triticum)
	Rhopalosiphum padi	Wheat (Triticum)
	Metopolophium dirhodum	Wheat (Triticum)