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EFFECTS OF BRACHYPTEROLUS PULICARIUS (L.) (COLEOPTERA: NITIDULIDAE) ON FLOWERING AND SEED PRODUCTION OF COMMON TOADFLAX

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  31 May 2012

A.S. McClay
Affiliation:
Alberta Environmental Centre, Bag 4000, Vegreville, Alberta, Canada T9C 1T4

Abstract

Impact of the flower- and shoot-tip-feeding beetle, Brachypterolus pulicarius (L.), on growth, flowering, and seed production of common toadflax, Linaria vulgaris (L.) Mill., was investigated using potted plants. Brachypterolus pulicarius had no effect on root or shoot biomass of attacked plants. Adult feeding by B. pulicarius delayed onset of flowering by 27 days relative to controls. Flowering of attacked plants was suppressed from mid-June until mid-July, but by mid-August flowering was similar to that of control plants. Total seed weight, individual seed weight, and percentage germination were all reduced significantly on attacked plants, resulting in a 74% reduction in number of viable seeds produced. Brachypterolus pulicarius is univoltine in Alberta, overwintering mainly as pupae.

Résumé

Des plants de la Linaire vulgaire, Linaria vulgaris (L.) Mill., ont été gardés en pots et mis en présence d’un parasite des fleurs et des boutons terminaux, ie coléoptère Brachypterolus pulicarius (L.), afin d’étudier l’impact du parasite sur la croissance, la floraison et la production de graines de la plante. Le parasite est resté sans effet sur la biomasse des racines ou des pousses chez les plants attaqués. Chez des plants attaqués par des adultes de B. pulicarius, la floraison a commencé 27 jours plus tard que chez des plants témoins. La floraison des plants affectés a été enrayée de la mi-juin à la mi-juillet, mais déjà à la mi-août la floraison était semblable à celle des plants témoins. La masse totale des graines, la masse des graines individuelles et le pourcentage de graines qui ont germé ont subi une réduction significative chez les plants attaqués, résultant en une réduction globale de 74% du nombre de graines viables produites. Brachypterolus pulicarius, une espèce univoltine en Alberta, passe l’hiver surtout au stade nymphal.

[Traduit par la rédaction]

Type
Articles
Copyright
Copyright © Entomological Society of Canada 1992

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