Effects of ten naturally occurring sugars on the reproductive success of the green lacewing, Chrysoperla carnea

Abstract

The longevity and reproduction of Chrysoperla carnea (Stephens) (Neuroptera: Chrysopidae) when fed on ten naturally occurring sugars and on an artificial diet composed by honey and pollen (1:1) were evaluated. The effect of these diets differed between sexes. However insects of both sexes lived longer when fed on fructose than on sucrose, melezitose or raffinose. None of the females oviposited when offered raffinose, galactose or mannose. Moreover, lifetime fecundity of females fed on trehalose was not different from the artificial diet. The intrinsic rate of natural increase did not differ between trehalose, maltose, melibiose, fructose, glucose and artificial diet, being significantly lower for individuals fed on melezitose and sucrose. The importance of these results for the selection of natural sugar sources that enhance C. carnea effectiveness as a biological control agent against crop pests is discussed.

Higher longevity and fecundity of Chrysoperla carnea, a predator of olive pests, on some native flowering Mediterranean plants

“…These results point out that C. carnea had a better performance on flowers with high levels of trehalose both simultaneously on nectar and pollen, as for C. majus and F. vulgare, or only on nectar, as for L. hispanica. These results are in accordance with those obtained previous study (Gonzalez et al 2015).…”

“…1a). Sugar feeding is particularly important to promote their survival, longevity, fecundity, and intrinsic growth rates (Principi and Canard 1984;Wäckers and van Rijn 2012;Gonzalez et al 2015). Moreover, as recently demonstrated, both longevity and lifetime fecundity differ significantly when the insect where fed different naturally occurring sugars (Gonzalez et al 2015).…”

Are wild flowers and insect honeydews potential food resources for adults of the olive moth, Prays oleae?

“…Non-crop resources are sometimes enhanced to improve pest control, but the knowledge about the effect of those resources on pests is crucial before increasing their presence in the field in order to hamper pests performance (Baggen and Gurr 1998;Lavandero et al 2006;Winkler et al 2009a, b). Many studies analyzed the effect of different food resources (pollen, nectar, insect honeydews, and sugar solutions) on different natural enemies and on pests survival, reproduction, efficiency, or attractiveness (Jervis et al 1993;Baggen and Gurr 1998;Géneau et al 2012;AguilarFenollosa and Jacas 2013;Balzan and Wäckers 2013;Beltrà et al 2013;Gonzalez et al 2015;Saeed et al 2015). However, knowledge about the use of non-crop resources by most of the adult pests is still insufficient and as far as we know it has never been studied for the olive moth, Prays oleae (Bernard) (Lepidopteta: Praydidae).…”

Does natural vegetation from olive groves benefit the olive moth, Prays oleae?

“…The main claim advanced is that, along the lines of Paredes et al, (2013Paredes et al, ( , 2015, a ground cover of the plant species studied in this work does not benefit any of the generations of the olive moth and therefore their maintenance in olive groves is to be considered. This article advances critical knowledge for the implementation of conservation biological control strategies against P. oleae by showing that plants previously identified as valuable for beneficial insects (Gonzalez et al, 2016a(Gonzalez et al, , 2016bParedes et al, 2013;Porcel et al, 2017;Villa et al, 2016aVilla et al, , 2016b are not benefiting P. oleae.…”