Oviposition of Orius insidiosus (Hemiptera: Anthocoridae) on strawberry plant

PASCUA, M.; ROCCA, M.; SANCHEZ, N. E.; GRECO, N.

Malaga

Congreso; 4th International Entomophagous Insects Conference; 2015

varias

The omnivorous predator Orius insidiosus is a biological control agent of thrips in horticultural crops. Females lay endophitic eggs in some plants, and certain plant parts are more appropriate to eggs development and nymph´s survival (e.g. thin and without appendages epidermal tissues, thick structures). Furthermore, plants with flowers, that offer pollen and nymphs of thrips to nymphs and adults of O. insidiosus, would receive more eggs than plants without flowers. We quantified the oviposition of O. insidiosus in strawberry plant, with and without flowers, and identified plant structures adequate to oviposition. Three females and one male were released in cages with a strawberry plant having five leaves and one flower or only five leaves. Fifteen replications of each treatment were conducted. The number of eggs and their position in leaf blade, primary and secondary rib, petiole, petiolule, floral petiole and calyx were recorded after 48 h. Hatching was recorded after four or five days. Similar number of eggs were laid in plants with and without flower (ANOVA, P= 0.549). In plants with flower, floral petiole and calyx received more eggs than the other structures (GLM, Poisson, log link function: P