Abstract
An analysis of the variation of fore-, mid- and hindgut contents in third- to sixth-instar nymphs of the African grasshopper, Zonocerus variegatus, freshly caught every hour in the field, and also left without food for 1, 6 and 12 hr, showed that gut motility and the movement of ingesta through the gut was maximal at 08.00-10.00, 13.00–14.00 and 16.00 hr. Movement of ingesta was very slow at night. A diurnal rhythm therefore governs gut emptying. Nymphs, confined in jars with leaf discs, fed from 07.00 to 19.00 hr over the temperature range 17–34°C. Most food was eaten after 13.00 hr when it is warmer. Field insects feed during the night as well. Midgut α- and -glucosidase activity was detected at all times of testing (06.00, 12.00, 19.00 and 24.00 hr), but the levels of activity were lowest at 12.00 and 19.00 hr.
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Modder, W.W.D. Diurnal Variation in Feeding and Gut Activity in Nymphs of the African Pest Grasshopper, Zonocerus Variegatus. Int J Trop Insect Sci 5, 527–531 (1984). https://doi.org/10.1017/S1742758400004987
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S1742758400004987