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Attraction of insects to potato plants through use of artificial honeydews and aphid juice

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Abstract

Three field experiments were conducted to determine the attractiveness of artificial honeydews and aphid juice to insects. Honeydew mixtures were composed of molasses, honey and tryptophane alone or combined with Feed-Wheast®, (produced by culturing the yeastKluyveromyces fragilis Jorgensen on cottage cheese whey). Potato plants,Solanum tuberosum L., treated with sprays of these mixtures attracted the following predatory insects: green lacewings,Chrysopa carnea Stephens; ladybird beetlesHippodamia spp.,Coccinella transversoguttata Brown,Scymnus postpinctus Casey; andGeocoris pallens Stal.Lygus hesperus Knight, a phytophagous species was also attracted. Honey and tryptophane were the most attractive to all species. Aphid juice was attractive to several predators but not to lygus bugs. Orientation through olfactory response was indicated for ladybird beetles and lygus bugs. The predatory species attracted are important in the natural control of potato insects. The attraction ofL. hesperus to artificial honeydews may be useful in the control of this pest.

Résumé

Trois essais ont été réalisés pour déterminer la capacité d'attraction de mélanges de «miellats’ artificiels et d'un extrait de pucerons sur les insectes. Ces mélanges de «miellat» consistaient en mélasses, miel et tryptophane seul ou combiné avec du Feed-Wheast® produit à l'aide de levain deKlyuveromyces fragilis Jorgensen sur un substrat de petit-lait de sérac. Les plantes de pomme de terreSo lanum tuberosum L. pulvérisées avec ces mélanges ont attiré les insectes prédateurs suivants: hémérobes,Crysopa carnea Stephens, coccinellesHippodamia spp.,Coccinella transversoguttata Brown,Scymnus postpinctus Casey; etGeocoris pallens Stal.,Lygus hesperus Knight; une espéce phytophage fut aussi attirée. Le miel et le tryptophane se sont révélés les plus attractifs pour toutes les espèces. L'»extrait de pucerons» a attiré beaucoup de prédateurs, excepté le lygus. Une réponse olfactive suivant l'orientation a été constatée pour les coccinelles et les lygus. Les espèces prédatrices ainsi attirées sont importantes pour le contrôle naturel des ravageurs des pommes de terre. L'attraction desL. hesperus pour les mélanges de «miellat» artificiel pourrait être utilisée pour lutter contre ce ravageur.

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Author notes

  1. A. A. Ben Saad

    Present address: Agricultural Research Centre, Tripoli, Libyan Arab Republic

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Entomology, University of Idaho, Moscow, USA

    A. A. Ben Saad & G. W. Bishop

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  1. A. A. Ben Saad
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  2. G. W. Bishop
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Additional information

This study is a part of a Ph. D. dissertation submitted to the University of Idaho.

Published with the approval of the Director, Idaho Agricultural Experiment Station as Research Paper no. 1463.

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Ben Saad, A.A., Bishop, G.W. Attraction of insects to potato plants through use of artificial honeydews and aphid juice. Entomophaga 21, 49–57 (1976). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02372015

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