Abstract. Arthropod predators and parasitoids provide valuable ecosystem services in agricultural crops by suppressing populations of insect herbivores. Many natural enemies are influenced by non-crop habitat surrounding agricultural fields, and understanding if, and at what scales, land use patterns influence natural enemies is essential to predicting how landscape alters biological control services. Here we focus on biological control of soybean aphid, Aphis glycines Matumura, a specialist crop pest recently introduced to the north-central United States. We measured the amount of biological control service supplied to soybean in 26 replicate fields across Michigan, Wisconsin, Iowa, and Minnesota across two years (2005)(2006). We measured the impact of natural enemies by experimentally excluding or allowing access to soybean aphid infested plants and comparing aphid population growth over 14 days. We also monitored aphid and natural enemy populations at large in each field. Predators, principally coccinellid beetles, dominated the natural enemy community of soybean in both years. In the absence of aphid predators, A. glycines increased significantly, with 5.3-fold higher aphid populations on plants in exclusion cages vs. the open field after 14 days. We calculated a biological control services index (BSI) based on relative suppression of aphid populations and related it to landscape diversity and composition at multiple spatial scales surrounding each site. We found that BSI values increased with landscape diversity, measured as Simpson's D. Landscapes dominated by corn and soybean fields provided less biocontrol service to soybean compared with landscapes with an abundance of crop and non-crop habitats. The abundance of Coccinellidae was related to landscape composition, with beetles being more abundant in landscapes with an abundance of forest and grassland compared with landscapes dominated by agricultural crops. Landscape diversity and composition at a scale of 1.5 km surrounding the focal field explained the greatest proportion of the variation in BSI and Coccinellidae abundance. This study indicates that natural enemies provide a regionally important ecosystem service by suppressing a key soybean pest, reducing the need for insecticide applications. Furthermore, it suggests that management to maintain or enhance landscape diversity has the potential to stabilize or increase biocontrol services.

Aim  Coccinellid beetles are important predators that contribute to pest suppression in agricultural landscapes. Since the introduction of the exotic coccinellids Coccinella septempunctata L. and Harmonia axyridis Pallas into the USA, several studies have reported a decline of native Coccinellidae in agroecosystems. We aimed to investigate the influence of landscape composition on native and exotic coccinellid abundance within soybean fields.Location  Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin.Methods  As part of a 2‐year study (2005–06) on the biological control of the soybean aphid, Aphis glycines Matsumura, we examined coccinellid communities in 33 soybean fields using yellow sticky card traps. Landscape heterogeneity and composition were measured at multiple spatial scales ranging 1–3.5 km from focal soybean fields where coccinellid sampling took place.Results  Exotic species made up 90% of the total coccinellid community in Michigan soybean fields followed by Wisconsin (84%), Minnesota (66%) and Iowa (57%). Harmonia axyridis was the dominant exotic coccinellid in all states comprising 45–62% of the total coccinellid community, followed by C. septempunctata (13–30%). Two additional exotic species, Hippodamia variegata (Goeze) and Propylea quatuordecimpunctata (L.) were also found in the region. Overall, the most abundant native coccinellid was Hippodamia convergens Guerin‐Meneville; however, its abundance varied across the region, comprising 0% (Michigan) to 28% (Iowa) of the total coccinellid community. Landscape structure significantly influenced the composition of coccinellid communities in soybean agroecosystems. We found that native coccinellids were most abundant in low‐diversity landscapes with an abundance of grassland habitat while exotic coccinellids were associated with the abundance of forested habitats.Main conclusion  We propose that grassland dominated landscapes with low structural diversity and low amounts of forested habitat may be resistant to exotic coccinellid build‐up, particularly H. axyridis and therefore represent landscape‐scale refuges for native coccinellid biodiversity.

There is increasing evidence that Aphis glycines Matsumara (Hemiptera: Aphididae) populations are negatively impacted by endemic natural enemies within North America. In Iowa, surveys of natural enemies in soybean, Glycine max (L.) Merr., conducted before the arrival of A. glycines revealed a number of species that may contribute to their mortality. We used several sampling methods to determine the diversity of the natural enemy community in Iowa soybean since the arrival of A. glycines. Natural enemies were collected using fieldcounts (in situ sampling), destructive counts, sweep-net sampling, and yellow-sticky cards. When predaceous arthropods were combined across all sampling methods, six orders were identified, including nine families and 13 genera. In comparison with a similar study conducted 26 yr ago, we observed fewer native coccinellids with the most abundant being the exotics Harmonia axyridis (Pallas) and Coccinella septempunctata L. (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae). Combining all foliar-based sampling methods reveals a community of four aphidophagous taxa that account for >94% of the total captured: Toxomerus spp., H. axyridis, Orius insidiosus (Say), and Chrysoperla spp. In both years, destructive counts collected fewer species with more found using field-counts, sweep-net, and yellow-sticky cards. Sweep-net and yellow-sticky cards collected more agile life-stages and species as expected from sampling methods that rely on the insects' activity/density to be effective. Our data suggest absolute methods such as destructive and field-counts may underestimate the contribution of mobile predators onA. glycines mortality.

Despite evidence for biological control in North America, outbreaks of the invasive soybean aphid, Aphis glycines Matsumura (Hemiptera: Aphididae), continue to occur on soybean (Glycine max L. Merr.). Our objectives were to determine whether natural enemies delay aphid establishment and limit subsequent population growth and whether biological control can be improved by altering the within-field habitat. We hypothesized that a living mulch would increase the abundance of the aphidophagous community in soybean and suppress A. glycines establishment and population growth. We measured natural enemy and A. glycines abundance in soybean grown with and without an alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) living mulch. Soybean grown with an alfalfa living mulch had 45% more natural enemies and experienced a delay in A. glycinesestablishment that resulted in lower peak populations. From our experiments, we concluded that the current natural enemy community in Iowa can delay A. glycines establishment, and an increase in aphidophagous predator abundance lowered the rate ofA. glycines population growth preventing economic populations (i.e., below the current economic threshold) from occurring. Incorporation of a living mulch had an unexpected impact on A. glycines population growth, lowering the aphids' intrinsic rate of growth, thus providing a bottom-up suppression of A. glycines. We suggest future studies of living mulches or cover crops for A. glycines management should address both potential sources of suppression. Furthermore, our experience suggests that more consistent biological control of A. glycines may be possible with even partial resistance that slows but does not prevent reproduction. RightsThis article is the copyright property of the Entomological Society of America and may not be used for any commercial or other private purpose without specific written permission of the Entomological Society of America.This article is available at Iowa State University Digital Repository: http://lib.dr.iastate.edu/ent_pubs/11BioOne sees sustainable scholarly publishing as an inherently collaborative enterprise connecting authors, nonprofit publishers, academic institutions, research libraries, and research funders in the common goal of maximizing access to critical research. Alfalfa Living Mulch Advances Biological Control of Soybean AphidAuthor (s) ABSTRACT Despite evidence for biological control in North America, outbreaks of the invasive soybean aphid, Aphis glycines Matsumura (Hemiptera: Aphididae), continue to occur on soybean (Glycine max L. Merr.). Our objectives were to determine whether natural enemies delay aphid establishment and limit subsequent population growth and whether biological control can be improved by altering the within-Þeld habitat. We hypothesized that a living mulch would increase the abundance of the aphidophagous community in soybean and suppress A. glycines establishment and population growth. We measured natural enemy and A. glycines abundance in soybean grown with and without an alfalfa (Medica...

No abstract