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Field evaluation of synthetic aphid sex pheromone in enhancing suppression of aphid abundance by their natural enemies

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Abstract

The effects of lures containing aphid sex pheromone components (4aS,7S,7aR)-nepetalactone and (1R,4aS,7S,7aR)-nepetalactol on abundance of pea aphid, Acyrthosiphon pisum Harris, aphid parasitoids, predators and hyperparasitoids in alfalfa fields were investigated over three years. Although aphid abundance was variable among years, pheromone lure treatment significantly decreased aphid abundance. Among natural enemies of the aphids, only parasitism by the aphid parasitoids Aphidius ervi Haliday and Praon barbatum Mackauer was affected by pheromone lure treatment, with parasitism rates being significantly increased. In contrast, no pheromone lure effects on abundance were detected for predacious species and hyperparasitoids. These results indicate that slow-release formulations of synthetic aphid sex pheromone can attract primary aphid parasitoids and enhance their ability to suppress aphid abundance in the field, and that negative effects on biological control by hyperparasitoids and intraguild predation are not promoted by pheromone lure treatment.

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Acknowledgments

We would like to thank the laboratory students of Obihiro University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine for field survey assistance. We have also appreciated the support from the staff at the University farm. This study was partially founded by Grants-in-Aid for Regional R&D Proposal-Based Program from Northern Advancement Center for Science & Technology of Hokkaido, Japan. Rothamsted Research receives grant-aided support from the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) of the United Kingdom.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for Ecological Research, Kyoto University, 2-509-3 Hirano, Otsu, Shiga, 520-2113, Japan

    Yoshitaka Nakashima, Takashi Y. Ida & Junji Takabayashi

  2. Rothamsted Research, Harpenden, Herts, AL5 2JQ, UK

    Wilf Powell, John A. Pickett & Michael A. Birkett

  3. Department of Forest Entomology, Forestry and Forest Products Research Institute, 1 Matsunosato, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 305-8687, Japan

    Hisatomo Taki

Authors
  1. Yoshitaka Nakashima
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  2. Takashi Y. Ida
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  3. Wilf Powell
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  4. John A. Pickett
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  5. Michael A. Birkett
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  6. Hisatomo Taki
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  7. Junji Takabayashi
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Correspondence to Yoshitaka Nakashima.

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Nakashima, Y., Ida, T.Y., Powell, W. et al. Field evaluation of synthetic aphid sex pheromone in enhancing suppression of aphid abundance by their natural enemies. BioControl 61, 485–496 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10526-016-9734-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10526-016-9734-3

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