File: <chlor1.ima.htm> [For educational purposes only] Terminology Glossary <Principal Natural
Enemy Groups > <Citations> |
Immature Stages
of Chloropidae
Detailed information on immature stages of Chloropidae (=
Oscinidae) is being acquired. However,
Clausen (1940) noted that Latrodectes
mactans F. (Jenks 1936) lays
spindle shaped eggs on the outer surface of a spider's egg sac; and after
hatching in 2-3 days, the young larvae burrow through the covering to feed on
the eggs. After consuming the eggs
over a period of ca. 2 days, they pupate in the same area. Chloropisca
glabra Meig. is a predator
of the sugar beet root aphid, Pemphigus
betae Doane, and has been
considered to be the most effective natural enemy of this pest (Parker
1918). Hundreds of individuals are
found on a single infested plant. The
female crawls down the base of the plant to insert her ovipositor by a
backward thrust into a soil crevice, where the eggs are laid. Aphids in the habitat provide the
oviposition stimulus because no eggs are found on uninfested plants. Eggs hatch in 3-5 days, and each larva
consumes up to 50 mature aphids during a 9-12 day development period. They remain, as pupae for ca. 9 months,
although some individuals emerge in 2-3 weeks and there is therefore a
partial 2nd generation.
References: Please
refer to <biology.ref.htm>,
[Additional references may be
found at: MELVYL Library ] |