Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
PHYTOPARASITICA, cilt.41, sa.2, ss.203-211, 2013 (SCI-Expanded)
In this study certain biological and prey consumption features of the predator of mealybug, namely Nephus kreissli Fursch & Uygun (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae), fed on vine mealybug Planococcus ficus (Signoret) (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae), were determined under the laboratory conditions. Experiments were performed in the acclimatized room under 28 +/- 1A degrees C, 60 A +/- 10% r.h. and a photoperiod of 16:8 h(L:D) conditions. To determine the biological features of the coccinellid, predator individuals were continuously observed from egg stage to end of adult stage. The development, survival and fecundity of N. kreissli were determined and all the measured data were recorded daily. The total development time from egg to the eclosion of adult stage was determined as 31.6 A +/- 0.4 days. The lifespan of males and females was 66.0 A +/- 3.8 and 65.8 A +/- 3.5 days, respectively; and a single female laid 122.6 eggs. The raw data related to life history were analyzed by using the age-stage, two-sex life table. The intrinsic rate of increase, the net reproductive rate, and the mean generation time were 0.0709 A +/- 0.0036 d(-1), 53.1 A +/- 9.5 offspring and 55.8 A +/- 1.3 days, respectively. The first and second instars of N. kreissli preferred egg stages of P. ficus to other stages of mealybug. On the other hand, third and fourth instars and adult predators preferred the second and third instar nymphs and adult females of the prey. It was determined that the egg consumption of N. kreissli increased with the development of larval stages, and that the highest consumption was recorded in its fourth instar.