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ARS Home » Midwest Area » Columbia, Missouri » Biological Control of Insects Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #309447

Title: Performance and cost comparisons for continuous rearing of Arma chinensis (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae: Asopinae) on a zoophytogenous artificial diet and a secondary prey

Author
item ZOU, D - Chinese Academy Of Agricultural Sciences
item Coudron, Thomas
item WU, H - Chinese Academy Of Agricultural Sciences
item GU, X - Chinese Academy Of Agricultural Sciences
item XU, W - Chinese Academy Of Agricultural Sciences
item ZHANG, L - Chinese Academy Of Agricultural Sciences
item CHEN, H - Chinese Academy Of Agricultural Sciences

Submitted to: Journal of Economic Entomology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 1/12/2015
Publication Date: 2/14/2015
Citation: Zou, D.Y., Coudron, T.A., Wu, H.H., Gu, X.S., Xu, W.H., Zhang, L.S., Chen, H.Y. 2015. Performance and cost comparisons for continuous rearing of Arma chinensis (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae: Asopinae) on a zoophytogenous artificial diet and a secondary prey. Journal of Economic Entomology. 108(2):454-461.

Interpretive Summary: The insect predator, Arma chinensis is native to China, Korea and Mongolia and has the potential to suppress populations of several agricultural and forest insect pests. Alternative food sources have been tested to improve rearing this beneficial insect but thus far all have contained live insects or insect tissue. An artificial diet devoid of insect tissue would greatly simplify, and possibly reduce the cost, of rearing A. chinensis and thereby be of interest to beneficial insectaries and producers interested in mass production of the predator. This study compared the performance and costs associated with rearing A. chinensis on an insect-free artificial diet comprised of pig liver and tuna fish compared to an alternative food source of Chinese oak silk moth pupae. When fed on the artificial diet nymphal development was prolonged and the number of eggs produced was lower, as was the percentage of eggs that hatched. The accumulative effect resulted in a 1.7 increase in cost of rearing for diet-fed compared to pupae-fed predators. For the diet to be a cost-effective alternative to pupae future diet improvements will have to achieve reduced developmental time and increased fertility, and possibly less costly ingredients.

Technical Abstract: The impact of a zoophytogenous, insect-free artificial diet and a secondary prey, pupae of Chinese oak silk moth Antheraea pernyi (G.) (Lepidoptera: Saturniidae), on the developmental rate, life history parameters, and fertility was examined for F6, F9 and F12 consecutive generations for domesticated Arma chinensis (F.) (Heteroptera: Pentatomidae). This study showed that when fed an insect-free artificial diet during both the nymphal and adult stages, developmental times were prolonged, and fecundity, egg viability, net reproductive rates (R0) and intrinsic rates of increase (rm) declined. As a result, the cost to rear A. chinensis on the artificial diet approached 1.7 times the cost of rearing A. chinensis on pupae of A. pernyi. Future diet improvements should attempt to reduce developmental time, increase fecundity and egg viability and utilize less costly nutrient sources.