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A food-supply device for maintaining Cotesia vestalis, a larval parasitoid of the diamondback moth Plutella xylostella, in greenhouses

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Abstract

The limited availability of sugar sources (e.g., flowers) in greenhouses may affect biological pest control by parasitoid wasps. However, few studies have focused on feeding devices to provide parasitoids with sugar foods. We investigated the accessibility of a yellow-colored bottle-type feeding device to adult Cotesia vestalis (Halliday), a larval endoparasitoid of the diamondback moth Plutella xylostella (L.). All parasitoids died within four days in a room with no sugar source, whereas 66.7 % of individuals survived if a bottle-type feeding device providing honey solution was installed. We also investigated female longevity in response to different sugar solutions presented in a bottle-type feeding device. Honey and sugar mixtures (glucose and fructose) improved female longevity (38.4 and 39.2 days, respectively) much more than water (3.1 days), indicating these feeding devices containing sugar foods to be potentially useful for maintaining C. vestalis in greenhouses where natural food sources are limited.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Ms. Kimiko Kanbe, Ms. Yumiko Togashi and Ms. Yoshiko Ishimura for rearing the insects and growing the plants. This research was supported by the Bio-oriented Technology Research Advancement Institution and JSPS KAKENHI Grant Numbers (24780049 for SK, 19380188 and 22380038 for TS).

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Author notes

  1. Masayoshi Uefune

    Present address: Department of Agrobiological Resources Faculty of Agriculture, Meijo University, Nagoya, Aichi, 468-8502, Japan

  2. Junichiro Abe

    Present address: National Agricultural Research Center for Western Region, Fukuyama, Hiroshima, 721-8514, Japan

  3. Satoru Urano

    Present address: Peco IPM Pilot Co., Ltd, Kumamoto, Kumamoto, 860-0004, Japan

  4. Eizi Yano

    Present address: Department of Agricultural Science, Kinki University, Nara, Nara, 631-8505, Japan

Authors and Affiliations

  1. National Agricultural Research Center, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 305-8666, Japan

    Takeshi Shimoda, Takayuki Mitsunaga, Koukichi Nagasaka, Yoshito Suzuki & Eizi Yano

  2. Center for Ecological Research, Kyoto University, Otsu, Shiga, 520-2113, Japan

    Masayoshi Uefune & Junji Takabayashi

  3. National Agricultural Research Center for Western Region, Kyoto, Ayabe, 623-0035, Japan

    Junichiro Abe & Koukichi Nagasaka

  4. National Institute for Agro-Environmental Sciences, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 305-8604, Japan

    Soichi Kugimiya

  5. Soda Aromatic Co. Ltd, Tokyo, 103-0023, Japan

    Kota Sano

  6. National Agricultural Research Center for Kyushu Okinawa Region, Koshi, Kumamoto, 861-1192, Japan

    Satoru Urano

Authors
  1. Takeshi Shimoda
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  2. Takayuki Mitsunaga
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  3. Masayoshi Uefune
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  4. Junichiro Abe
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  5. Soichi Kugimiya
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  8. Satoru Urano
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  9. Yoshito Suzuki
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  10. Eizi Yano
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  11. Junji Takabayashi
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Takeshi Shimoda.

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Handling Editor: Torsten Meiners.

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Shimoda, T., Mitsunaga, T., Uefune, M. et al. A food-supply device for maintaining Cotesia vestalis, a larval parasitoid of the diamondback moth Plutella xylostella, in greenhouses. BioControl 59, 681–688 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10526-014-9611-x

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