Saveer Ahmed M, Hu Jing, Strickland Jaime, Krueger Robert, Clafford Shannon, Zhang Aijun
Invasive Insect Biocontrol and Behavior Laboratory, Beltsville Agricultural Research Center-West, USDA-ARS, Beltsville, MD 20705, USA.
National Clonal Germplasm Repository for Citrus & Date, USDA-ARS, Riverside, CA 92507, USA.
Insects. 2024 Jan 17;15(1):65. doi: 10.3390/insects15010065.
Understanding the fundamental life cycle and reproductive behavior of a pest insect is essential for developing efficient control strategies; however, much of this knowledge remains elusive for a multitude of insects, including the cotton seed bug, . Here, we report the results of our comprehensive study on the cotton seed bug's life cycle, including mating behavior, adult lifespan, and egg-to-adulthood development. Our findings showed that adult males and females began mating as early as three days after emerging (75%), and the frequency of mating increased to 100% by the fifth day. Mated females commenced oviposition on cotton seeds as early as two days after mating, with a cumulative mean number of 151 fertile eggs oviposited during the first oviposition cycle. Furthermore, around 10% of eggs from both mated and unmated females remained unfertilized. The first instar nymphs began emerging approximately seven days following oviposition. To track their development, we monitored the newly hatched nymphs daily until they reached adulthood. There were five nymphal stages, which cumulatively took roughly 28 to 30 days. Notably, mating positively influenced the survivorship and lifespan of adult . Mated males and females exhibited median lifespans of 28 and 25 days, respectively. In contrast, unmated males and females only lived for a median lifespan of 9.5 days, about one-third that of the mated . Our study provides key insights into the life history for new IPM strategies.
了解害虫的基本生命周期和繁殖行为对于制定有效的防治策略至关重要；然而，对于包括棉籽蝽在内的众多昆虫来说，许多此类知识仍然难以捉摸。在此，我们报告了我们对棉籽蝽生命周期的全面研究结果，包括交配行为、成虫寿命以及从卵到成虫的发育过程。我们的研究结果表明，成年雄性和雌性早在羽化后三天就开始交配（75%），到第五天交配频率增加到100%。交配后的雌性最早在交配后两天就在棉籽上产卵，在第一个产卵周期内累计平均产下151枚受精卵。此外，交配和未交配雌性的卵中约有10%未受精。一龄若虫大约在产卵后七天开始孵化。为了追踪它们的发育过程，我们每天监测新孵化的若虫，直到它们成年。有五个若虫阶段，累计大约需要28到30天。值得注意的是，交配对成年棉籽蝽的存活率和寿命有积极影响。交配后的雄性和雌性成虫的中位寿命分别为28天和25天。相比之下，未交配的雄性和雌性的中位寿命仅为9.5天，约为交配后棉籽蝽的三分之一。我们的研究为新的综合害虫管理策略提供了关于棉籽蝽生活史的关键见解。
