Development of Coleomegilla maculata de Geer (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) With Prey and Artificial Diet

Abstract

Coleomegilla maculata De Geer (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) is an important predator and has the potential to be used as a biological control agent of insect pests of maize (Zea mays L.) and sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench]. This study aimed to evaluate the development of C. maculata larvae fed eggs Anagasta kuehniella (Zeller) (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) alone or associated with artificial diet, eggs of Spodoptera frugiperda (J. E. Smith) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) and nymphs of Schizaphis graminum (Rondani) (Hemiptera: Aphididae). The experiment was conducted in a complete randomized design with four replications, each with 10 larvae of C. maculata in an acclimatized room (25 ± 1 ºC, 70 ± 10% RH and 12 hours photophase). The duration of the stages of C. maculata was similar in all treatments, except for one that used nymphs of S. graminum, resulting in a shorter period for the larval stage. The viability of larval, prepupal and pupal stages and larval to adult C. maculata was high and similar in all treatments. No effect of diets on the weight of C. maculata adults occurred, except for the heavier insects fed on eggs of A. kuehniella, whose males and females weighed 9.8 ± 0.3 mg and 13.3 ± 0.5 mg, respectively.

Biological aspects of Eriopis connexa (Germar) (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) fed on different insect pests of maize (Zea mays L.) and sorghum [Sorghum bicolor L. (Moench.)]

“…Larvae of these predators may complete their development with prey that are not aphids but this is poorly studied, although eggs of Coleoptera and Lepidoptera have been used as alternative prey for them (Silva et al, 2009(Silva et al, , 2010(Silva et al, , 2012.…”

Production of Coleopteran Predators

“…Coleomegilla maculata males and females fed the artificial diet with Ephestia eggs weighed more than individuals fed Ephestia eggs alone. Adult males and females fed the artificial diet with Ephestia eggs were not heavier than individuals fed aphids alone (Silva et al, 2010).…”

“…We discuss some methods that scientists use to estimate the optimum temperature for population growth. Aphids, lepidopterans, coleopterans Atallah and Newsom (1966), Silva et al (2010) Coccinellidae Cryptolaemus montrouzieri (Mulsant) * Scales, mealybugs Heidari and Copland (1993), Attia et al (2011) Coccinellidae Delphastus catalinae (Horn) * Whiteflies Pickett et al (1999), Kutuk and Yigit (2007) Coccinellidae Diomus terminatus (Say) Aphids Tifft et al (2006) Coccinellidae Eriopis connexa (Germar) Aphids Martos et al (1992), Silva et al (2009) Coccinellidae Harmonia axyridis (Pallas) * Aphids Dong et al (2001), Sighinolfi et al (2008) Coccinellidae Hippodamia convergens (Guerin) * Aphids Hussein and Hagen (1991), Kato et al (1999) Coccinellidae …”

“…Note that simply adding eggs of the moth E. kuehniella, frozen for one day, to this artificial diet resulted in a development rate of 72% from the larval to adult stage. In a similar study, Silva et al (2010) reared the pink spotted lady beetle C. maculata on a combination of a yeastbased artificial diet plus moth eggs, E. kuehniella in comparison to Ephestia eggs alone, Spodoptera frugiperda (J. E. Smith) eggs alone, or aphids S. graminum alone (Table 2.3). They found that predators took less time to complete larval development when fed aphids rather than the other food treatments, but total development from larva to adult stage did not differ between food treatments.…”

Occurrence and biology of Dinocampus coccinellae (Schrank, 1802) (Hymenoptera; Braconidae: Euphorinae) parasitising different species of Coccinellidae (Coleoptera) in Neotropical region

“…Their preys are species of mites and insects such as: greenflies, aphids, eggs and neonate larvae of Coleoptera and Lepidoptera (Stathas, 2000;Lu et al, 2002;Omkar and Singh, 2006;Silva et al, 2009Silva et al, , 2010.…”