Does crop identity impact aphid pest control by wasp natural enemies?

Jennifer Slater of the James Hutton Institute will deliver this Aberdeen Entomological Club seminar entitled “Does crop identity impact aphid pest control by wasp natural enemies?”. It will be held at the James Hutton Institute in Aberdeen (and screened to the Institute’s Dundee site).

This study examines the effect of rearing plant identity (‘maternal effect’) on the parasitoid wasp, Aphidius ervi, when attacking aphid pests. The prediction is tested that wasps will produce more offspring on the aphid-plant combination they were raised on. Pea aphids (Acyrthosiphon pisum) raised on bean (Vicia faba) or pea (Pisum sativum) and potato aphids (Macrosiphum euphorbiae) raised on tomato plants (Solanum lycopersicum) have been used to investigate maternal effects on aphid and wasp fitness using choice tests and performance assays. The maternal effects of pea aphids were also investigated, to see if maternal effects in a lower trophic level impact on a higher trophic level. This study will reveal the potential impacts of intercropping on biological control of insect pests in agroecosystems.

The talk starts at 4pm with light refreshments available from 3.30pm.

For further information, please contact Jenni Stockan, Environmental & Biochemical Sciences, James Hutton Institute, Craigiebuckler, Aberdeen, AB15 8QH, UK. Office: +44 (0)1224 395 239, or Jennifer Slater, Ecological Sciences, James Hutton Institute, Invergowrie, Dundee, DD2 5DA.