Aphid honeydew affects positively Chrysoperla externa fitness

• Autor(a) principal: Barroso, André Mazochi
• Data de Publicação: 2022
• Tipo de documento: Dissertação
• Idioma: eng
• Título da fonte: LOCUS Repositório Institucional da UFV
• Texto Completo: https://locus.ufv.br//handle/123456789/30481; https://doi.org/10.47328/ufvbbt.2022.211
• topic: Pragas - Controle biológico; Crisopídeo; Sorghum bicolor; Melanaphis; Pólen; Entomologia Agricola

Dealing with arthropod pests is one of the main problems of modern agriculture. The use of agrochemicals has often become inefficient due to the acquisition of resistance by pests, in addition to being harmful to human health and to the environment. For these reasons, eco-friendly methods of combating pests are currently gaining ground. This is the case of Conservation Biological Control, which involves practices such as the use of companion plants to provide shelter and/or food resources and to attract natural enemies of pests, allowing their population establishment in the agroecosystem. The objective of this dissertation was to study the suitability of food resources directly or indirectly provided by sorghum (Sorghum bicolor) as a companion plant to the lacewing Chrysoperla externa. First, I assessed the suitability of honeydew produced by aphids (Melanaphis sp.) on S. bicolor as food resource for C. externa adults. The survival of C. externa adults was higher and females did oviposit viable eggs when they had access to Melanaphis sp. honeydew. Females without access to honeydew did not oviposit. I followed by evaluating whether pollen of sorghum is suitable to C. externa adults when offered alone or in combination with Melanaphis sp. honeydew. The lacewings survived longer and females oviposited viable eggs when they had access to honeydew but the pollen presence did not influence oviposition or adult survival. These results show that sorghum can act as a companion plant to provide honeydew for C. externa adults when infested by aphids of the genus Melanaphis, aiming for the conservation of these biocontrol agents in agroecossystems due to longer survival and oviposition of viable eggs. This strategy should only work when the aphids are not pests of the main crops. Keywords: Green lacewing. Sorghum bicolor. Melanaphis. Pollen. Conservation Biological Control.