Olfactory response of the anthocorid predatory bug Orius sauteri to thrips‐infested eggplants

Abstract

The predator Orius sauteri (Poppius) (Heteroptera: Anthocoridae) is an effective arthropod natural enemy of thrips, especially Thrips palmi Karny (Thysanoptera: Thripidae), a serious pest of vegetables. First, we studied O. sauteri's response to the odour from thrips‐infested eggplant [Solamum melongena L. (Solanaceae)] in a laboratory by two‐choice experiments using a Y‐tube olfactometer. When detached eggplant leaves were used as odour sources, O. sauteri preferred the volatiles from uninfested leaves to clean air. Concerning preferences among differently infested leaves, O. sauteri preferred the volatiles from plants infested with 10–100 thrips per leaf to uninfested leaves, but showed no significant preference for artificially damaged leaves over uninfested leaves. Similar results were obtained when complete plants were tested as the odour source. Second, release and recapture experiments in a greenhouse, a more realistic set of conditions, were conducted to confirm whether a significant preference for infested plants occurred at similar infestation levels as in the laboratory. Trends favouring infested plants were detected at densities of five and 500 thrips per plant; however, at the five thrips per plant, this trend was due to the large deviation seen in infested plants in only one replicate. In light of the low tolerable thrips density of eggplant, it is necessary to confirm whether artificial treatments with chemicals induce the emission of herbivore‐induced plant volatiles that can attract O. sauteri and prolong its residence time on the leaf.

Does the aggressiveness of the prey modify the attack behavior of the predator Supputius cincticeps (Stål) (Hemiptera, Pentatomidae)?

“…Additionally, S. cincticeps touch their prey with their antennae and legs, supporting the idea that predatory stink bugs also use tactile clues in prey selection. Similar observations have been made by others to support the conclusion that predators may use tactile (Lemos et al 2005), visual (Haynes et al 2002;Nakamatsu & Tanaka 2005) and chemical clues (Haynes et al 2002;Mendel et al 2004;Mochizuki & Yano 2007) to locate and recognize their prey. We noticed that initial recognition of the prey may directly influence the attack behavior of S. cincticeps, suggesting that it is able to adapt its behavior according to the prey being offered (Wignall & Taylor 2009).…”

Olfactory response of the omnivorous mirid bug Nesidiocoris tenuis to eggplants infested by prey: Specificity in prey developmental stages and prey species

“…Several studies reported that arthropod predators were attracted to volatiles from uninfested plants (Mochizuki and Yano, 2007;Takabayashi and Dicke, 1992;Uefune et al, 2010). Here, we first tested whether N. tenuis used uninfested plant volatiles as a cue to find host plants, and found that N. tenuis was attracted to uninfested eggplant volatiles over clean air.…”

“…Accumulating studies on the specific olfactory responses of natural enemies to prey-infested plant volatiles have focused on specialist natural enemies (De Moraes et al, 1998;Geervliet et al, 1996;Gohole et al, 2003;Pierre et al, 2011;Takabayashi et al, 1995;Yoneya et al, 2009). Studies focused on the olfactory responses of natural enemies that prey on a wide range of arthropod taxa to prey-infested plant volatiles are also accumulating (Cortesero et al, 1997;Moayeri et al, 2006;Mochizuki and Yano, 2007;Tatemoto and Shimoda, 2008;Uefune et al, 2010). For example, Uefune et al (2010) reported Wollastoniella rotunda was attracted to eggplant volatiles induced by a low density of Tetranychus kanzawai over those induced by the same density of Thrips palmi.…”

Dispersal of aphids, whiteflies and their natural enemies under photoselective nets

“…Some studies have focused on the attraction of Orius spp. by volatile compounds from prey and visual learning (Henaut et al 1999;Mochizuki and Yano 2007). Moreover, interplant dispersal of the phytoseiid mite A. swirskii is considered to be limited in space and it is mostly observed between plants with canopies in contact with each other (Buitenhuis et al 2010).…”