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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Fort Pierce, Florida » U.S. Horticultural Research Laboratory » Subtropical Insects and Horticulture Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #249473
Title: Research toward an artifical diet for adult Asian Citrus Psyllid

Author
item Hall, David
item Shatters, Robert - Bob
item Carpenter, James
item Shapiro, Jeffrey

Submitted to: Annals of the Entomological Society of America
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 4/5/2010
Publication Date: 6/28/2010
Citation: Hall, D.G., Shatters, R.G., Carpenter, J.E., Shapiro, J.P. 2010. Progress toward an artificial diet for adult Asian citrus psyllid. Annals of the Entomological Society of America. 103(4):611-617.

Interpretive Summary: Research progress is reported on an artificial diet for adult Asian citrus psyllid, the vector of citrus greening disease (huanglongbing). The primary objective was to develop a system for screening potential toxins for activity against adults. The base diet was a sterilized solution of sucrose (30%) and yellow-green food coloring (0.5 percent) in tap water. Addition of the food coloring was necessary to prompt adults to feed. Among the feeding trials discussed, a mean of 69.1 percent adults survived for 14 days on the base sucrose diet. Survival rates of males and females were similar. Adults feeding on the sucrose diet may have ingested less food than adults feeding on citrus leaf disks based on differences in quantities of adult excrements deposited in feeding chambers. However, survival of adults feeding on leaf disks was only marginally better than survival of adults feeding on the base sucrose diet, and final rates of survival of adults fed these two food sources were the same.

Technical Abstract: Research progress is reported on an artificial diet for adult Asian citrus psyllid, Diaphorina citri Kuwayama (Hemiptera: Psyllidae). The primary objective was to develop a system for screening antimicrobial peptides and other potential toxic proteins for activity against adults. The base diet was a sterilized solution of sucrose (30 percent) and yellow-green food coloring (0.5 percent) in tap water. All of the studies presented were conducted at 25 °C, 14:10 h L:D, and 75 percent RH, and the adult psyllids were less than seven days old when they were transferred to diet. Addition of the food coloring was necessary to prompt adults to feed. Among the feeding trials discussed, a mean of 69.1 ± 3.2 percent adults survived for 14 days on the base sucrose diet. Survival rates of males and females were similar. Adults feeding on the sucrose diet may have ingested less food than adults feeding on citrus leaf disks based on differences in quantities of adult excrements deposited in feeding chambers. However, survival of adults feeding on leaf disks over a two week period was only marginally better than survival of adults feeding on the base sucrose diet, and final rates of survival of adults fed these two food sources were not significantly different.