Banfield-Zanin Jennifer A, Leather Simon R
Department of Life Sciences, Silwood Park, Imperial College London, Ascot SL5 7PY, UK.
Centre for Integrated Pest Management, Harper Adams University, Newport TF10 8NB, UK.
Insects. 2016 Sep 27;7(4):49. doi: 10.3390/insects7040049.
Climate change in the UK is predicted to cause an increase in summer drought events. is an important pest of Sitka spruce (), causing defoliation of trees, and is predicted to become more abundant in response to climatic change, reducing spruce productivity. Populations are also moderated by invertebrate predators, though the extent to which this might be modified under a changing climate is unclear. is preyed upon by the coccinellid species (a spruce specialist) and (a generalist), populations of which naturally occur in spruce plantations. This study sought to investigate the effect of different intensities and frequencies of drought on the consumption rate of the aphids by the two coccinellids. In Petri dish trials, severe drought stress increased the consumption rates of 3rd instar aphids by both adult and larval coccinellids. Moderate intermittent stress tended to result in a reduced consumption rate for larval coccinellids only, suggesting an age-dependent response. The findings of this study suggest that, under drought conditions, a prey-mediated effect on predator consumption, and, therefore, biocontrol efficacy, is likely, with drought intensity and frequency playing an important role in determining the nature of the response.
预计英国的气候变化将导致夏季干旱事件增加。[某种昆虫名称]是西加云杉（[西加云杉学名]）的一种重要害虫，会导致树木落叶，预计随着气候变化其数量会增加，从而降低云杉的生产力。尽管其数量也受到无脊椎动物捕食者的控制，但在气候变化情况下这种控制的程度尚不清楚。[某种昆虫名称]是球蚜科物种[球蚜科物种学名1]（一种云杉专食性昆虫）和[球蚜科物种学名2]（一种多食性昆虫）的猎物，它们的种群自然存在于云杉种植园中。本研究旨在调查不同强度和频率的干旱对这两种球蚜科昆虫捕食蚜虫速率的影响。在培养皿试验中，严重干旱胁迫增加了成年和幼虫球蚜科昆虫对3龄蚜虫的捕食速率。中度间歇性胁迫仅导致幼虫球蚜科昆虫的捕食速率降低，这表明存在年龄依赖性反应。本研究结果表明，在干旱条件下，猎物介导的对捕食者捕食量的影响以及因此对生物防治效果的影响很可能存在，干旱强度和频率在决定这种反应的性质方面起着重要作用。
