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Host shift to peas in the diamondback moth Plutella xylostella (Lepidoptera: Plutellidae) and response of its parasitoid Diadegma mollipla (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 March 2007

A. Rossbach ,
B. Löhr  and
S. Vidal
A. Rossbach
Affiliation:
Institute of Plant Pathology and Plant Protection, Entomological Section, Georg-August-University Goettingen, Grisebachstrasse 6, 37075 Goettingen, Germany International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology, PO Box 30772, Nairobi, Kenya
B. Löhr
Affiliation:
International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology, PO Box 30772, Nairobi, Kenya
S. Vidal*
Affiliation:
Institute of Plant Pathology and Plant Protection, Entomological Section, Georg-August-University Goettingen, Grisebachstrasse 6, 37075 Goettingen, Germany
*
*Fax: +49 551 3912105 E-mail: [email protected]
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Abstract

Host shifts in herbivorous insects are thought to sometimes provide enemy-free space on the novel host plant. A population of the diamondback moth Plutella xylostella (Linnaeus), an oligophagous pest on crucifers, recently shifted to sugar snap- and snowpeas (Pisum sativum) in Kenya, resulting in heavy damage to these crops. The impact of this host shift on the interaction with Diadegma mollipla (Holmgren), one of the most frequent parasitoid species attacking P. xylostella in this area, was investigated. Parasitism rates and development of two strains of D. mollipla, one reared from a cabbage-feeding strain of P. xylostella and the second from the new pea-feeding strain, changed based on the host-plant that P. xylostella fed upon, with both parasitoid strains more effective on the novel host plant. Parasitism by the cabbage-D. mollipla strain on P. xylostella infesting peas was four times higher than on P. xylostella infesting cabbage when a single plant species was present. However, when both crops were offered together, the level of parasitism dropped to the level seen when cabbage was offered alone. Diadegma mollipla developed on both hosts, but cabbage-D. mollipla had a longer total development time. Pupae of cabbage-feeding P. xylostella were significantly heavier than pupae of pea-feeding P. xylostella and parasitism had no influence on these differences. Diadegma mollipla preferred to parasitize the pea-feeding P. xylostella. Thus, the host shift by P. xylostella to a novel host plant did not necessarily provide enemy-free space, with the parasitoid species tested. The implications of these findings for the host–parasitoid relationship are discussed.

Keywords

Plutella xylostelladiamondback mothcrucifershost shiftDiadegma molliplaPisum sativumKenya
Type
Research Article
Information
Bulletin of Entomological Research , Volume 96 , Issue 4 , August 2006 , pp. 413 - 419
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2006

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