Suitability of Chinese oak silkworm eggs for the multigenerational rearing of the parasitoid Trichogramma leucaniae

Abstract

Trichogramma leucaniae is believed to be an efficient biological control agent for controlling the soybean pod borer [SPB; Leguminivora glycinivorella]. The large eggs of Chinese oak silkworm, Antheraea pernyi, are one of the best alternative host for mass production of Trichogramma. However, they are considered poor host for the growth and development of T. leucaniae. Here, we determine the feasibility of successive rearings of T. leucaniae on the large eggs for eight generations and evaluated their capacity of parasitizing SPB eggs of different ages. In the first four generations, the suitability of T. leucaniae reared on large eggs exhibited a significant increasing tendency and then decreased with the successive generations thereafter. The percentage of parasitized eggs and number of emerged adults per egg were increased from 40.0% and 10.8 adults/egg in F1 generation to 86.7% and 36.4 adults/egg in F4 generation respectively. In addition, T. leucaniae reared on A. pernyi for four generations significantly parasitized more SPB eggs regardless of egg age compared with those reared on Corcyra cephalonica eggs. These results provided useful information on the feasibility of mass production of T. leucaniae by reared for successive generations on A. pernyi large eggs.

Demography and Fitness of Anastatus japonicus Reared from Antheraea pernyi as a Biological Control Agent of Caligula japonica

“…Since A. japonicus had been reared for six generations on COS eggs in the laboratory and all tested wasps were reared from COS eggs, it is likely that the parasitoid might have adapted to this natal host. Many studies showed that many parasitoids performed better in or on the host they previously developed due to preimaginal learning [54][55][56][57]. For example, the parasitism rate and longevity of Aphidius microlophii Pennacchio and Tremblay were significantly increased after the parasitoid was reared on the non-natural host of the pea aphid Acyrthosiphon pisum Harris for several generations [54].…”

Biology of Trichogramma marandobai and T. manicobai (Hymenoptera: Trichogrammatidae) in eggs of Erinnyis ello (Lepidoptera: Sphingidae)

“…The size of the host egg has been reported as one of the most important factors affecting the parasitism taxa of mass-reared Trichogramma species. This factor influences the size of the descendants and consequently their reproductive performance (Xu et al, 2020). From large hosts, more Trichogramma emerge and they develop in less time, compared to smaller hosts, due to the higher nutritional quantity of the host.…”

Performance of Chouioia cunea reared from a coleopteran alternative host as a biocontrol agent against the invasive lepidopteran pest, Hyphantria cunea

“…Fresh Antheraea pernyi cocoons were purchased from the Tussah Provenance Base in Yongji County (Jilin, China). The fresh cocoons were stored in a refrigerator (CM3R72‐6, Qingdao Teboer Science and Technology Development Co., Ltd., China) at 4 °C for 2–3 months 43 . Unlike T. molitor or H. cunea , A. pernyi pupae can be used for a long period of time when stored in the refrigerator.…”

“…The fresh cocoons were stored in a refrigerator (CM3R72-6, Qingdao Teboer Science and Technology Development Co., Ltd., China) at 4 °C for 2-3 months. 43 Unlike T. molitor or H. cunea, A. pernyi pupae can be used for a long period of time when stored in the refrigerator. The cocoons' shells were removed before the experiments, and the naked pupae were used after they were acclimated under room temperatures.…”