Evaluating the Role of Predation in Population Fluctuations of the Soybean Aphid Aphis glycines in Farmer's Fields in Indonesia

Soybean Aphid Predators in Québec and the Suitability of Aphis glycines as Prey for Three Coccinellidae

“…Recent empirical results in Asia (Han, 1997;Van den Berg et al, 1997;Wu et al, 2004) and North America suggest that coccinellids together with other natural enemies may suppress A. glycines populations and mitigate their impact on soybean plants. In agreement with predator-prey models and empirical evidence (Zhang and Chen, 1991;Chang and Kareiva, 1999;Takagi, 1999;Elliott et al, 2000), some of these studies underline the determinant role Coccinellidae may play at low soybean aphid densities, when more effective specialized aphidophagous natural enemies are scarce (Van den Berg et al, 1997;Fox et al, 2004;Rutledge et al, 2004). Because of their early arrival in soybean fields and their presence throughout the growing season, the guild of indigenous and naturalized coccinellids (mostly P. quatuordecimpunctata and H. axyridis) is likely to play a significant role in biological control of the soybean aphid in Que´bec.…”

“…In theory, following the arguments developed by Janssen and Sabelis (1992), a natural enemy that has a r m value equal to or greater than its host/prey should have the capacity to regulate the population of its prey. The rate of increase of A. glycines populations is higher on young soybean plants than on mature plants, with r m values of 0.31 d )1 , 0.23 d )1 and 0.15 d )1 on plants of 3, 5 and 7 weeks, respectively (Van den Berg et al, 1997). These values are much higher than those we measured Wright and Laing (1978) for coccinellids, and may therefore limit the potential of the coccinellids as biological control agents of the soybean aphid.…”

Incorporating natural enemy units into a dynamic action threshold for the soybean aphid,Aphis glycines(Homoptera: Aphididae)

“…The soybean aphid, Aphis glycines Matsumura (Homoptera: Aphididae), has become a serious exotic pest of soybean, Glycine max (L.) Merrill, since its discovery in North America in 2000 . Natural enemies are important in regulating soybean aphid populations in Asia and in North America . At 25 °C and in the absence of natural enemies, soybean aphid populations can double in 1.5 days .…”

Parental age at mating affects reproductive attributes of the aphidophagous ladybird beetle, Coelophora saucia (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae)

“…Coelophora saucia (Mulsant), commonly called the Macular site ladybug and the Tokyo star in China, is an aphidophagous ladybird beetle, which is common in Northern India, China, Japan, Tawain, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Vietnam and Korea (Hirano et al, 1996;Han, 1997;Berg et al, 1997;Omkar et al, 2005;Singh & Tripathi, 2008). It is a relatively little studied ladybird, with only a few studies on its life attributes (Omkar & Pathak, 2006Omkar et al, 2005;Pathak, 2008) and none on the effect of parental age at mating.…”