Department of Entomology, University of Georgia, Tifton, GA, USA.
USDA-Agriculture Research Services, U.S. Vegetable Laboratory, Charleston, SC, USA.
J Insect Sci. 2024 Nov 1;24(6). doi: 10.1093/jisesa/ieae104.
Generalist arthropod predators have historically contributed to the suppression of arthropod pests in many agroecosystems. The successful implementation of integrated pest management (IPM) programs hinges on the incorporation of insecticides that are compatible with the biological attributes of natural enemies of pests. A potentially promising pathway is improving biological control by natural enemies through the timely application of selective insecticides. In our study, adult predators were exposed to commercially available insecticides (cyantraniliprole and pyriproxyfen) using a combined laboratory and field approach to assess their effects on survivorship and predation. We isolated 2 predators, Hippodamia convergens Guérin-Méneville and Geocoris punctipes (Say), in the laboratory to estimate the survivorship and consumption of whitefly nymphs, Bemisia tabaci (Gennadius). In the field, we deployed whitefly nymph-infested potted cotton plants in replicated cotton plots with both insecticide treatments. We enumerated whitefly nymph populations on enclosed (predator-exclusion) and open (predator-accessible) potted plants. While pyriproxyfen had a negligible effect on the predators, cyantraniliprole exposure directly affected H. convergence by reducing survivorship duration and indirectly influenced both predators by reducing prey consumption and altering the consumption of alternative prey. In field conditions, regardless of pesticide exposure, whitefly-infested potted plants that excluded predators had more whiteflies than predator-accessible potted plants. Overall, pyriproxyfen demonstrated minimal impact on the predators in the laboratory or field, while cyantraniliprole adversely influenced mortality and indirect foraging under controlled laboratory conditions but did not have a significant impact in the field.
节肢动物捕食者通常在许多农业生态系统中有助于抑制节肢动物害虫。综合虫害管理（IPM）计划的成功实施取决于使用与害虫天敌的生物学特性相容的杀虫剂。一种有前途的方法是通过及时应用选择性杀虫剂来改善天敌的生物防治。在我们的研究中，采用实验室和野外相结合的方法，让成年捕食者接触市售杀虫剂（氰氟虫腙和吡丙醚），以评估它们对生存能力和捕食作用的影响。我们在实验室中分离出两种捕食者，即异色瓢虫（Hippodamia convergens Guérin-Méneville）和龟纹瓢虫（Geocoris punctipes）（Say），以估计其对粉虱若虫（烟粉虱，Bemisia tabaci （Gennadius））的存活率和取食情况。在野外，我们在有杀虫剂处理的重复棉花地块中部署了受粉虱若虫侵染的盆栽棉花植物。我们在封闭（捕食者排除）和开放（捕食者可进入）盆栽植物上对粉虱若虫进行了计数。虽然吡丙醚对捕食者的影响可以忽略不计，但氰氟虫腙暴露直接影响异色瓢虫，减少了其生存能力持续时间，并通过减少猎物的取食和改变替代猎物的取食间接影响了两种捕食者。在野外条件下，无论是否接触杀虫剂，有粉虱侵染的、排除捕食者的盆栽植物比捕食者可进入的盆栽植物中的粉虱数量更多。总体而言，吡丙醚在实验室或野外对捕食者的影响最小，而氰氟虫腙在受控实验室条件下对死亡率和间接觅食有不利影响，但在野外没有显著影响。
