Biological Aspects of Two Coccinellid Predatory Insects Reared on Artificial Diets and Natural Preys under Constant Temperature

Abstract

Laboratory experiments were carried out in the Insectary of Economic Entomology Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Mansoura University to develop two artificial diets for rearing coccinelled predators during the period from 2017 till 2019. The results showed that the two predators reared successfully on these diets and the average period of larval instars lasted 24.64±2.5 and 21.67 ± 2.22 days for Hypodamia tridecimpunctata L. and Chilomenus propinqua isis(Mulsant)when reared on the artificial diet (AD1), while that were recorded 19.9±2.1 and 17.6±1.9 days when these predators reared on the artificial diets AD2 respectively. The pupal stage was durated in average of 6.24±0.48 and 5.42±042 days when reared on the artificial diet(AD1)for these two coccinellid predators respectively. Meanwhile the data indicated that the pupal stage lasted in average of 5.5±0.9 days and 4.95±0.97 days when reared on the artificial diets AD2. The female average fecundity of H. tridecimpunctata and C. propinqua isis were 150.7±8.1 and 193.4±10.5 eggs when these predators reared on artificial diet(AD1). Meanwhile the obtained results showed that the average fecundity of H. tridecimpunctata and C. propinqua isis females recorded 189.7 ± 10.6 and 250.8±14.6 eggs respectively when this predators reared on artificial diets (AD2). It can be concluded that the artificial diets (AD2) was very efficient for rearing H. tridecimpunctata and C. propinqua isis as the larval stage duration were two shorts on artificial diet (AD2) than artificial diet (AD1). The obtained data cleared that the females of each species deposited higher number of eggs on artificial diets (AD2).