Elsevier

Micron

Volume 42, Issue 5, July 2011, Pages 478-483
Micron

Ultrastructure of the sensilla on larval antennae and mouthparts in the peach fruit moth, Carposina sasakii Matsumura (Lepidoptera: Carposinidae)

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.micron.2011.01.006Get rights and content

Abstract

The ultrastructure of the sensilla on the larval antennae and mouthparts of the peach fruit moth, Carposina sasakii Matsumura, were investigated using scanning electron microscopy. On each three-segmented antenna, the basal scape is devoid of sensilla, the pedicel possesses two sensilla chaetica and three sensilla basiconica, and the terminal flagellum carries distally one sensillum styloconicum and three sensilla basiconica. The labrum bears six pairs of sensilla chaetica; the epipharynx carries two pairs of small epipharyngeal sensilla, three pairs of flattened sensilla chaetica, and a pair of broad sensillum digitiformium. Each dentate mandible carries two sensilla chaetica basally on its outer face. On the maxillae, the cardo and stipes each carry a sensillum chaeticum distally; each galea has three elongate flattened sensilla basiconica, two short sensilla chaetica, and two large sensilla styloconica. The distal segment of the maxillary palp possesses distally seven sensilla basiconica and one sensillum styloconicum, and laterally one sensillum digitiformium and one sensillum placodeum. Each labial palp bears distally a short cone-shaped sensillum chaeticum and an elongate slender sensillum styloconicum. The possible functions of these sensilla in the feeding process are briefly discussed.

Research highlights

► The peach fruit moth, Carposina sasakii, is one of the most serious pests of many fruits, with the larvae boring in the fruits, frequently causing significant damage. ► The sensilla on larval antennae and mouthparts of this important pest is investigated with SEM for the first time. ► Sensilla of the larvae are concentrated on the distal surfaces of the antennae, galea, maxillary palp, and labial palp.

Introduction

The peach fruit moth, Carposina sasakii Matsumura, is one of the most serious pests of fruits in East Asia, with the larvae boring in the fruits of various important fruit trees, frequently causing significant damage. Its host plants consist of several economically important fruits, including peach (Prunus persica), apricot (Prunus armeniaca), hawthorn (Crataegus pinnatifida), apple (Malus domestica), pear (Pyrus spp), jujube (Zizyphus jujuba), wild jujube (Zizyphus spinosus), and pomegranate (Punica granatum) (Hua et al., 1998, Ishiguri and Toyoshima, 2006, Kim and Lee, 2010). In China, the mature larva escapes from the infested fruit, falls to the ground and enters the soil to make a cocoon, in which it overwinters as a diapaused prepupa. In the next spring, adult moth emerges after a pupal stage of approximately 13 days from an elongated cocoon. The female moth deposits one egg on each developing fruit after copulation and the resultant larva bores into the fruit (Hua et al., 1998). Although the life cycle, host range, and population management have been well documented in C. sasakii (Hua et al., 1998, Kim and Lee, 2002, Kim and Lee, 2003), its morphology (especially the larval morphology) has not been well studied so far.

Insect sensilla play important roles in semiochemical detection and perception both in adult and larva stages (Sato and Touhara, 2009). In the Lepidoptera, the sensilla on the antennae and mouthparts have been well documented in many pest species for their adult stage, since they are involved in semiochemical reception and are related to food seeking and food acceptance (Zacharuk and Shields, 1991, Steinbrecht, 1999). In contrast, only limited amount of works has been conducted on larvae even though their damage is caused solely by the larval stage (Zacharuk and Shields, 1991). Herein we investigated the ultrastructure of the sensilla on the antennae and mouthparts of the larvae in C. sasakii Matsumura. The terminology of sensilla follows Albert (1980).

Section snippets

Materials and methods

The larvae of C. sasakii Matsumura (Lepidoptera: Carposinidae) were collected in apple orchards from infested apple fruits in Xianyang, Shaanxi Province in July 2009. The infested fruits with larvae were brought back to the laboratory and reared in plastic buckets with moist sand for the mature larvae to make cocoons inside. The mature larvae fell off from the fruits and entered the moist sand to make round cocoons to overwinter. The round cocoons were sieved out from the sand in 2 weeks and

Results

The head of C. sasakii larva is a rounded sclerotized capsule and hypognathous, with the mandibulate mouthparts directed downwards. The frontal portion of the head capsule is supplied with the antennae and mouthparts (Fig. 1). The paired antennae are short and arise from a prominent membranous base. The mouthparts are composed of a labrum, a pair of mandibles, a pair of maxillae, a labium, and a hypopharynx. On each side of the head capsule there is a group of six stemmata, which are arranged

Discussion

The main function of the antennae is olfactory in lepidopteran larvae. In C. sasakii, each antenna possesses three sensilla basiconica and two sensilla chaetica on the pedicel; three sensilla basiconica and one sensillum styloconicum on the distal flagellum. This result is similar to Pentateucha inouei (Lin, 2002) and Homoeosoma nebulella (Faucheux, 1995) even though the morphological appearances are different. The wall of the sensillum basiconicum is thin, and morphologically similar to that

Acknowledgments

We thank Zhongying Jing, Ruikai Bai and Liangliang Wu for assistance in collecting specimens. Hongmin Chen and Yao Wei provided assistance on SEM sample preparation. Dr. Karl-Ernst Kaissling kindly help improved the expression of the language. An anonymous reviewer made helpful comments on the revision of the manuscript. This research was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant no. 39570095).

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