Journal article 764 views 137 downloads
Natural enemy composition rather than richness determines pest suppression
Sanaa N. Alhadidi,
John N. Griffin,
Mike Fowler 
BioControl
Swansea University Author:
Mike Fowler
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DOI (Published version): 10.1007/s10526-018-9870-z
Abstract
Natural enemy (NE) biodiversity is thought to play an important role in agricultural pest suppression. However, the relative importance of the number of NE species (species richness), versus the particular combinations of species (species composi- tion), in determining aphid suppression and ultimate...
| Published in: | BioControl |
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| ISSN: | 1386-6141 1573-8248 |
| Published: |
2018
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| Online Access: |
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| URI: | https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa38839 |
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| Abstract: |
Natural enemy (NE) biodiversity is thought to play an important role in agricultural pest suppression. However, the relative importance of the number of NE species (species richness), versus the particular combinations of species (species composi- tion), in determining aphid suppression and ultimately crop yields, remains poorly understood. We tested the effects of NE richness and composition on pea aphids Acyrthosiphon pisum (Harris) and broad bean plants Vicia faba (Linn.). We used the larvae of two predator species, the ladybird Adalia bipunctata (Linn.) and the green lacewing Chrysopa carnea (Stephens), and the parasitic wasp Aphidius ervi (Haliday) as enemies. NEs generally reduced aphid density but did not increase final plant biomass, despite a significant negative correlation between aphid density and plant biomass. Among NE treatments, species richness had an inconsistent effect on aphid density. The compo- sition of NEs within richness levels also affected final aphid density: the ladybird was a key species among the treatments in controlling aphid density and was especially effective in combination with the para- sitoid. This ladybird/parasitoid combination also appeared to drive the higher level of suppression observed at the two, relative to three, species richness levels. Although these three species of aphid NEs are commonly used in aphid control, this is the first study, to our knowledge, that simultaneously examined these three species and highlighted the composition effect between the A. bipunctata and A. ervi. In conclusion, increasing NE species richness had an inconsistent effect on aphid density. Meanwhile, the presence of a key species (the ladybird) and its combination with a parasitoid was an important determinant of aphid biological control. |
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| Keywords: |
Biodiversity; Species richness; Species composition; Key species; Aphid control; Natural enemies |
| College: |
Faculty of Science and Engineering |