Understanding How Parasitoids Balance Food and Host Needs: Importance to Biological Control

Lewis, W. J.; Stapel, J.; Cortesero, Anne Marie; Takasu, Keiji

doi:10.1006/bcon.1997.0588

Cited by 148 publications

(99 citation statements)

References 53 publications

(71 reference statements)

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“…The above examples illustrate how plant attributes may contribute to successful prey location by natural enemies and it has been suggested that these attributes may be exploitable in pest control (Bottrell et al, 1998;Lewis et al, 1998;Cortesero et al, 2000). It has been long recognized that efficacy of adult natural enemies as biological agents against insect pests may be increased by supplying them with food sources.…”

Section: Exploitation Of Induced Defenses For Biological Controlmentioning

confidence: 99%

Recruitment of predators and parasitoids by herbivore-injured plants

Turlings

Wäckers

2004

Advances in Insect Chemical Ecology

296

258

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Section: Exploitation Of Induced Defenses For Biological Controlmentioning

confidence: 99%

Recruitment of predators and parasitoids by herbivore-injured plants

Turlings

Wäckers

2004

Advances in Insect Chemical Ecology

296

258

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“…In most agroecosystems where parasitoids play a crucial role in controlling pest insects, the two vital resources (i.e. host and food) for parasitoids are often not found in the same place, and adult parasitoids should be able to move frequently by flight between host-and food-containing areas to reproduce successfully (Lewis et al, 1998). Thus, the availability and the quality of floral nectar sources may determine, to a large degree, the flight capacity of parasitoids and the range they can search for hosts, thereby influencing the efficacy of parasitoids as biological control agents.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nutritional value of floral nectar sources for flight in the parasitoid wasp, Cotesia glomerata

Wanner

Dorn

2006

Physiological Entomology

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Abstract. This study investigates the feeding of the parasitoid Cotesia glomerata on the floral nectar of Anethum graveolens and Origanum vulgare and evaluates the nutritional value of these food sources for increasing flight capacity. A significantly higher proportion of females are observed feeding on A. graveolens immediately after being released onto the floral nectar plants compared with those of the group released onto O. vulgare, although female wasps from both groups spent a similar period of time feeding on both nectar sources and there is no significant difference in their body weight increase. Laboratory tests on computer-linked flight mills demonstrate that adult feeding significantly influences flight capacity, as defined by the number of flights, the longest single flight and the total distance flown during a given period of time, in female wasps but not in males, albeit the extent of influence varying with the type of food sources. After ad libitum feeding on the floral nectar of A. graveolens, female wasps perform flight activity as well as those feeding on honey, which is superior to those feeding on sucrose, in all the measured parameters. Feeding on the floral nectar of O. vulgare has a similar effect to feeding on the extrafloral nectar of Vicia faba and significantly increases the total distance flown but not the number of flights or the longest single flight. Feeding on sucrose does not increase flight capacity in the parasitoids beyond those having access to water only. The findings of this study suggest that judicious selection of floral nectar plants and habitat manipulation might play a key role in the biological control of pest insects.Key words. Adult feeding, flight capacity, floral nectar, parasitoid. IntroductionAdult feeding is necessary to meet nutritional requirements for successful reproduction in many parasitoids, especially in those synovigenic species (Godfray, 1994). Some species are known to feed on their hosts (Schmale et al., 2005); many others are exclusively reliant on nonhost food, such as, floral and extrafloral nectar or honeydew (Wa¨ckers, 1999). However, even those host-feeding species need to occasionally use saccharides as the main source of energy at adult stage (Jervis & Kidd, 1986;Jervis et al., 1996;Heimpel et al., 1997). In the field, adult parasitoids are observed visiting flowering plants to feed on floral or extrafloral nectar (Jervis et al., 1993;Idris & Grafius, 1995), and crops with nearby flowering vegetation have higher parasitism rates (Landis & Hass, 1992;Zhao et al., 1992;Stephens et al., 1998), although the finding of a recent field study suggests that vegetative characteristics of floral resource plants rather than flowers might influence the abundance of natural enemies (Rebek et al., 2005). In the laboratory, plant nectar shows a higher nutritional value compared with honeydew for sustaining longevity and fecundity in hymenopteran parasitoids (McDougall & Mills, 1997;Wa¨ckers, 2002;Lee et al., 2004).Previous laboratory studies show that adult...

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“…Many adult parasitoid species feed almost exclusively on nectar (Jervis et al, 1993), and without nectar parasitoids show a dramatic reduction in their ability to parasitize insect pests (Stapel et al, 1997;Lewis et al, 1998). Nectar can be found in floral nectaries and, in some plant species like cotton, in extrafloral nectaries, glands located outside of the flower.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%