Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-2brh9 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-22T17:52:46.776Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Effect of ground cover vegetation on the abundance and diversity of beneficial arthropods in citrus orchards

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 January 2010

E.B. Silva*
Affiliation:
Centro de Estudos Florestais, Instituto Superior de Agronomia, Universidade Técnica de Lisboa, 1349-017Lisboa, Portugal Departamento de Protecção de Plantas e Fitoecologia, Instituto Superior de Agronomia, Universidade Técnica de Lisboa, 1349-017Lisboa, Portugal
J.C. Franco
Affiliation:
Centro de Estudos Florestais, Instituto Superior de Agronomia, Universidade Técnica de Lisboa, 1349-017Lisboa, Portugal Departamento de Protecção de Plantas e Fitoecologia, Instituto Superior de Agronomia, Universidade Técnica de Lisboa, 1349-017Lisboa, Portugal
T. Vasconcelos
Affiliation:
Departamento de Protecção de Plantas e Fitoecologia, Instituto Superior de Agronomia, Universidade Técnica de Lisboa, 1349-017Lisboa, Portugal
M. Branco
Affiliation:
Centro de Estudos Florestais, Instituto Superior de Agronomia, Universidade Técnica de Lisboa, 1349-017Lisboa, Portugal
*
*Author for correspondence Fax: 351 213653430 E-mail: [email protected]

Abstract

The effect of ground cover upon the communities of beneficial arthropods established in the canopy of lemon trees was investigated, by comparing three ground-cover management treatments applied: RV, resident vegetation; S, sowed selected species; and BS, bare soil by controlling weeds with herbicide. Over two consecutive years, arthropod communities in the tree canopy were sampled periodically by beating and suction techniques. Significantly higher numbers of beneficial arthropods were found in the RV and S treatments in comparison with bare soil. Spiders and parasitoid wasps were the two most common groups, representing, respectively, 70% and 19% of all catches in beating samples and 33% and 53% in suction samples. For the RV and S treatments, significant seasonal deviations from the bare soil treatment were observed using principal response curves. Similar seasonal patterns were observed over the two years. The RV and S treatments showed significant positive deviations from the BS treatment in late spring and summer, accounted for the higher numbers of parasitoid wasps, coccinelids and lacewings present. By contrast, the seasonal deviations observed for the spider community differed from those of the remaining arthropods. During late winter and early spring, the RV and S treatments presented a higher abundance of spiders in the tree canopy, in comparison with bare soil, whereas in the summer significantly more spiders were found in the bare soil treatment. Spider movements between tree canopy and ground vegetation layers may justify this result.

Type
Research Paper
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2010

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Altieri, M.A., Ponti, L. & Nicholls, C.I. (2005) Manipulating vineyard biodiversity for improved insect pest management: case studies from northern California. International Journal of Biodiversity Science & Management 1, 113.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Andow, D.A. (1991) Vegetational diversity and arthropod population response. Annual Review of Entomology 36, 561586.Google Scholar
Araj, S.-E., Wratten, S., Lister, A. & Buckley, H. (2008) Floral diversity, parasitoids and hyperparasitoids–A laboratory approach. Basic and Applied Ecology 9, 588597.Google Scholar
Arnold, A.J. (1994) Insect suction sampling without nets, bags or filters. Crop Protection 13, 7376.Google Scholar
Baggen, L.R., Gurr, G.M. & Meats, A. (1999) Flowers in tri-trophic systems: mechanisms allowing selective exploitation by insect natural enemies for conservation biological control. Entomologia Experimentalis et Applicata 91, 155161.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Barrientos, J.A. (coord.) (2003) 1st practical course on arachnology: taxonomy of Iberian spiders. 132 pp. Jerez de la Frontera, Spain, Iberian Group of Arachnology (in Spanish).Google Scholar
Ben-Dov, Y., Miller, D.R. & Gibson, G.A.P. (2008) ScaleNet: A database of the scale insects of the world. http://www.sel.barc.usda.gov/scalenet/scalenet.htm (accessed 8 July 2008).Google Scholar
Bogya, S. & Markó, V. (1999) Effect of pest management systems on ground-dwelling spider assemblages in an apple orchard in Hungary. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment 73, 119127.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Branco, M., Santos, M., Calvão, T., Telfer, G. & Paiva, M.R. (2008) Arthropod diversity sheltered in Thaumetopoea pityocampa (Lepidoptera: Notodontidae) larval nests. Insect Conservation and Diversity 1, 215221.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bray, J.R. & Curtis, J.T. (1957) An ordination of the upland forest communities of southern Wisconsin. Ecological Monographs 27, 325349.Google Scholar
Brown, M.W. & Mathews, C.R. (2007) Conservation biological control of Rosy Apple aphid, Dysaphis plantaginea (Passerini), in Eastern North America. Environmental Entomology 36, 11311139.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Bueno, A.F. & Freitas, S. (2004) Effect of the insecticides abamectin and lufenuron on eggs and larvae of Chrysoperla externa under laboratory conditions. BioControl 49, 277283.Google Scholar
Bugg, R.L. & Pickett, C.H. (1998) Introduction: enhancing biological control-habitat management to promote natural enemies of agricultural pests. pp. 123in Pickett, C.H. & Bugg, R.L. (Eds) Enhancing Biological Control. Berkeley, CA, USA, University of California Press.Google Scholar
Bugg, R.L. & Waddington, C. (1994) Using cover crops to manage arthropod pests of orchards: a review. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment 50, 1128.Google Scholar
Ceballo, F.A. & Walter, G.H. (2005) Why is Coccidoxenoides perminutus, a mealybug parasitoid, ineffective as a biocontrol agent – Inaccurate measures of parasitism or low adult survival? Biological Control 33, 260268.Google Scholar
Costello, M.J. & Daane, K.M. (1998) Influence of ground cover on spider populations in a table grape vineyard. Ecological Entomology 23, 3340.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Corbett, A. (1998) The importance of movement in the response of natural enemies to habitat manipulation. pp. 2548in Pickett, C.H. & Bugg, R.L. (Eds) Enhancing Biological Control: Habitat Management to Promote Natural Enemies of Agricultural Pests. Berkeley, CA, USA, University of California Press.Google Scholar
Davies, F.S. & Albrigo, L.G. (1994) Citrus. 254 pp. Wallingford, UK, CAB International.Google Scholar
Duffy, J.E., Cardinale, B.J, France, K.E., McIntyre, P.B., Thébault, E. & Loreau, M. (2007) The functional role of biodiversity in ecosystems: incorporating trophic complexity. Ecology Letters 10, 522538.Google Scholar
Fiedler, A.K., Landis, D.A. & Wratten, S.D. (2008) Maximizing ecosystem services from conservation biological control: The role of habitat management. Biological Control 45, 254271.Google Scholar
Gauld, I. & Bolton, B. (Eds) (1988) The Hymenoptera. 332 pp. Oxford, UK, Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Hardin, J.W. & Hilbe, J.M. (2003) Generalized Estimating Equations. 222 pp. Boca Raton, FL, USA, Chapman & Hall/CRC Press.Google Scholar
Jonsson, M., Wratten, S.D., Landis, D.A. & Gurr, G.M. (2008) Recent advances in conservation biological control of arthropods by arthropods. Biological Control 45, 172175.Google Scholar
Katsoyannos, P. (1996) Integrated Insect Pest Management for Citrus in Northern Mediterranean Countries. 110 pp. Athens, Greece, Benaki Phytopatological Institute.Google Scholar
Landis, D.A., Wratten, S.D. & Gurr, G.M. (2000) Habitat management to conserve natural enemies of arthropod pests in agriculture. Annual Review of Entomology 45, 175201.Google Scholar
Lapointe, S.L. (2003) Leguminous cover crops and their interactions with citrus and Diaprepes abbreviatus (Coleoptera: Curculionidae). Florida Entomologist 86, 8085.Google Scholar
Lee, J.C., Heimpel, G.E. & Leibee, G.L. (2004) Comparing floral nectar and aphid honeydew diets on the longevity and nutrient levels of a parasitoid wasp. Entomologia Experimentalis et Applicata 111, 189199.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Magurran, A.E. (1988) Ecological Diversity and Its Measurement. 179 pp. London, UK, Chapman and Hall.Google Scholar
Marc, P., Canard, A. & Ysnel, F. (1999) Spiders (Aranaea) useful for pest limitation and bioindication. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment 74, 229273.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Oksanen, J. (2008) Multivariate analysis of ecological communities in R: vegan tutorial. http://cc.oulu.fi/~jarioksa/opetus/metodi/vegantutor.pdf (accessed 25 July 2008)Google Scholar
Olkowski, W. & Zhang, A. (1998) Habitat management for biological control, examples from China. pp. 255270in Pickett, C.H. & Bugg, R.L. (Eds) Enhancing Biological Control: Habitat Management to Promote Natural Enemies of Agricultural Pests. Berkeley, CA, USA, University of California Press.Google Scholar
Raimundo, A.A.C. & Alves, M.L.L. (1986) Revue of Coccinellidae from Portugal. 103 pp. Évora, Portugal, University of Évora (in Portuguese).Google Scholar
Riechert, S.E. (1998) The role of spiders and their conservation in the agroecosystem. pp. 211237in Pickett, C.H. & Bugg, R.L. (Eds) Enhancing Biological Control: Habitat Management to Promote Natural Enemies of Agricultural Pests. Berkeley, CA, USA, University of California Press.Google Scholar
Riechert, S.E. & Lockley, T. (1984) Spiders as Biological Control Agents. Annual Review of Entomology 29, 299320.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rieux, R., Simon, S. & Defrance, H. (1999) Role of hedgerows and ground cover management on arthropod populations in pear orchards. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment 73, 119127.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Riley, D.G. & Ciomperlik, M.A. (1997) Regional population dynamics of whitefly (Homoptera: Aleyrodidae) and associated parasitoids (Hymenoptera: Aphelinidae). Environmental Entomology 26, 10491055.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Roberts, M.J. (1995) Spiders of Britain and Northern Europe. 383 pp. London, UK, Harper Collins Publishers.Google Scholar
Rodrigues, P., Baptista, A., Passarinho, A., Grade, N., Silva, E.B. & Franco, J.C. (2003) Use of ‘Vortis’ arthropod suction sampler for monitoring natural enemies in citrus orchards. IOBC wprs Bulletin 26, 197201.Google Scholar
Roltsch, W., Hanna, R., Zalom, F., Shorey, H. & Mayse, M. (1998) Spiders and vineyards habitat relationships in Central California. pp. 311338in Pickett, C.H. & Bugg, R.L. (Eds) Enhancing Biological Control: Habitat Management to Promote Natural Enemies of Agricultural Pests. Berkeley, CA, USA, University of California Press.Google Scholar
Root, R.B. (1973) Organization of a plant-arthropod association in simple and diverse habitats: the fauna of collards (Brassica oleracea). Ecological Monographs 43, 94–125.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Russell, E.P. (1989) Enemies hypothesis: a review of the effect of vegetational diversity on predatory insects and parasitoids. Environmental Entomology 18, 590599.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sainju, U.M. & Singh, B.P. (1997) Winter cover crops for sustainable agricultural systems: Influence on soil properties, water quality, and crop yields. HortScience 32, 2128.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Schmidt, M.H. & Tscharntke, T. (2005) The role of perennial habitats for Central European farmland spiders. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment 105, 235242.Google Scholar
Schmidt, M.H., Roschewitz, I., Thies, C. & Tscharntke, T. (2005) Differential effects of landscape and managemenr on diversity and density of ground-dwelling farmland spiders. Journal of Applied Ecology 42, 281287.Google Scholar
Showler, A.T. & Greenberg, S.M. (2003) Effects of weeds on selected arthropod herbivore and natural enemy populations, and on cotton growth and yield. Environmental Entomology 32, 3950.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Smith, M.W., Arnold, D.C., Eikenbary, R.D., Rice, N.R., Shiferaw, A., Cheary, B.S. & Carroll, B.L. (1996) Influence of ground cover on beneficial arthropods in pecan. Biological Control 6, 164176.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sousa, E., Vasconcelos, T., Moreira, I. & Franco, J.C. (2006) Cover cropping. pp. 33554in Franco, J.C, Ramos, A.P. & Moreira, I. (Eds) Ecological Infrastructures and Biological Control: The Case of Citrus. Lisbon, Portugal, ISA Press (in Portuguese).Google Scholar
Spreen, T.H. (2001) Projections of World Production and Consumption of Citrus to 2010. China/FAO Citrus Symposium, 14–17 May 2001, Beijing. Available at http://www.fao.org/docrep/003/x6732e/x6732e02.htm.Google Scholar
Thies, C. & Tscharntke, T. (1999) Landscape structure and biological control in Agroecosystems. Science 285, 893895.Google Scholar
Thomson, C., Tomkins, A.R. & Wilson, D.J. (1996) Effect of insecticides on immature and mature stages of Encarsia citrina, an armoured scale parasitoid. pp. 15 in O'Callaghan, M. (Ed.) Proceedings of the NZ Plant Protection Conference 49. Havelock North, New Zealand, The New Zealand Plant Protection Society Inc. Available at http://www.nzpps.org/journal/49/nzpp49_001.pdf.Google Scholar
Tscharntke, T., Bommarco, R., Clough, Y., Crist, T.O., Kleijn, K., Rand, T.A., Tylianakis, J.M., van Nouhuys, S. & Vidal, S. (2007) Conservation biological control and enemy diversity on a landscape scale. Biological Control 43, 294309.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Urbaneja, A., Pascual-Ruiz, S., Pina, T., Abad-Moyano, R., Vanaclocha, P., Montón, H., Dembilio, O., Castañera, P. & Jacas, J.A. (2008) Efficacy of five selected acaricides against Tetranychus urticae (Acari:Tetranychidae) and their side effects on relevant natural enemies occurring in citrus orchards. Pest Management Science 64, 834842.Google Scholar
Van den Brink, P.J., Van den Brink, N.W. & Ter Braak, C.J.F. (2003) Multivariate analysis of ecotoxicological data using ordination: demonstrations of utility on the basis of various examples. Australian Journal of Ecotoxicology 9, 141156.Google Scholar
Wright, G.C., McCloskey, W.B. & Taylor, K.C. (2003) Managing orchard floor vegetation in flood-irrigated citrus groves. HortTechnology 13, 668677.Google Scholar