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Does pollen availability mitigate the impact of pesticides on generalist predatory mites?

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Abstract

The effect of the provision of pollen on the impact of pesticides on the predatory mite Kampimodromus aberrans was assessed at individual and population levels. In the laboratory we evaluated the influence of pollen amount and pollen application frequency on lethal and sub-lethal effects of chlorpyrifos and spinosad. In a potted plant experiment, the effects of pesticides and pollen were assessed on predatory mite population abundance. In the laboratory, survival and fecundity of predatory mites were reduced by insecticides, and spinosad was more toxic than chlorpyrifos. In the same experiment, high pollen application frequency alleviated the sub-lethal effect induced by chlorpyrifos. On potted plants, pollen applications reduced the impact of chlorpyrifos on K. aberrans, whereas without pollen applications the impact of spinosad and chlorpyrifos on the predatory mite population was similar. Results obtained here highlight that the provision of fresh pollen is of particular importance for predatory mites when pesticides are applied.

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Acknowledgments

This study has been supported by PRIN projects and Treviso province. We thank Virna Klaric for the support in laboratory trials. We also thank V. Girolami, M. Baldessari, G. Angeli and V. Malagnini for insightful discussions in an early stage of the study. We thank Patrick De Clercq, Dirk Babendreier and two anonymous reviewers for comments that improved the manuscript.

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  1. Shakeel Ahmad

    Present address: CABI Central and West Asia, Opposite 1-A Data Gunj Bakhsh Road, Satellite Town, Rawalpindi, Pakistan

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  1. Department of Agronomy, Food, Natural Resources, Animals and Environment (DAFNAE), University of Padua, Viale dell’Università 16, 35020, Padova, Legnaro, Italy

    Alberto Pozzebon, Shakeel Ahmad, Paola Tirello, Mauro Lorenzon & Carlo Duso

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  1. Alberto Pozzebon
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Correspondence to Alberto Pozzebon.

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Pozzebon, A., Ahmad, S., Tirello, P. et al. Does pollen availability mitigate the impact of pesticides on generalist predatory mites?. BioControl 59, 585–596 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10526-014-9598-3

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