Trophic networks associated with the aphid, Rhopalosiphum maidis (Fitch) (Hemiptera: Aphididae) in a cornfield, Manabí, Ecuador

Jesús A. Centeno-Parrales; Dorys T. Chirinos; Takumasa  Kondo

doi:10.17268/sci.agropecu.2022.029

Autores/as

Jesús A. Centeno-Parrales Instituto de Posgrado. Universidad Técnica de Manabí, Portoviejo, Province of Manabí.
Dorys T. Chirinos Universidad Técnica de Manabí
Takumasa Kondo Corporación Colombiana de Investigación Agropecuaria (AGROSAVIA), Palmira Research Station.

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.17268/sci.agropecu.2022.029

Palabras clave:

biological control, predation, hyperparasitism, maize, parasitoids, biocontrol

Resumen

The corn leaf aphid is considered an important pest associated with maize. This study aimed to discover the trophic associations around Rhopalosiphum maidis in Manabí, Ecuador. Maize leaves were sampled to determine the numbers of parasitized aphids, and the identities of predators and parasitoids. Nine taxa of natural enemies were detected: the primary parasitoid was Lysiphlebus testaceipes Cresson, 1880 (Hymenoptera: Braconidae); the hyperparasitoid Syrphophagus aphidivorus (Mayr, 1876) (Hymenoptera: Encyrtidae); the predatory hoverfly Ocyptamus dimidiatus (Fabricius, 1781) (Diptera: Syrphidae), four species of coccinellids, Cheilomenes sexmaculata (Fabricius, 1781), Cycloneda sanguinea (Linnaeus, 1763), Hippodamia convergens Guerin-Meneville, 1842 and Paraneda pallidula guticollis (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) and an assassin bug, Zelus sp. (Hemiptera: Reduviidae). A parasitoid, Pachyneuron formosum Walker, 1833 (Hymenoptera: Pteromalidae) emerged from hoverfly pupae. This study reports the presence of the parasitoids S. aphidivorus and P. formosum in Ecuador for the first time. These results increase the knowledge of a four-trophic level relationship (host plant – pest – parasitoids, predators – hyperparasitoids) in a maize agroecosystem as a fundamental basis for biological control programs.

Citas

Alam, M. J., Mukta, L. N., Nahar, N., Haque, M. S., & Razib, S. M. H. (2020). Management practices of aphid (Rhopalosiphum maidis) in infested maize field. Bangladesh Journal of Environmental Science, 38, 23-28.

Amorós-Jiménez, R., & Marcos-García, M. Á. (2020). Fitness-related parameters of the aphid predator Sphaerophoria rueppellii (Diptera, Syrphidae) feeding on three different aphid pests. Boletin de La Asociacion Española de Entomologia, 44(3-4), 299-315.

Bailon, A. G., Mendoza, F. L., Solis, L., Velasquez, J., Montes, K., et al. (2022). Endemic and invasive Coccinellidae associated with maize (Zea mays L.) fields, in Manabi province, Ecuador. Folia Oecologica, 49(1), 35-41.

Bañol, C., Pérez, N., Piñol, J., Barrientos, J. A., & Ventura, D. (2017). Interacción de la red áfido-parasitoide-hormiga en plantas asociadas a un cultivo ecológico de cítricos. Ecosistemas, 26(3), 67-79.

Bouvet, J. P. R., Urbaneja, A., & Monzó, C. (2021). Aphid predators in citrus crops: the least voracious predators are the most effective. Journal of Pest Science, 94(2), 321-333.

Caviedes, M., Carvajal-Larenas, F., & Zambrano, J. L. (2022). Generación de tecnologías para el cultivo de maíz (Zea mays L.) en el Ecuador. ACI Avances En Ciencias e Ingenierías, 14(1), 1-21.

Chen, Y., Martin, C., Mabola, J. C. F., Verheggen, F., Wang, Z., et al. (2019). Effects of host plants reared under elevated CO2 concentrations on the foraging behavior of different stages of corn leaf aphids Rhopalosiphum maidis. Insects, 10(6).

Chirinos, D. T., Anchundia, M., Castro, R., Castro, J., Geraud, J. E., & Kondo, T. (2021). Diversity of native and exotic parasitoids attacking agricultural pests in Ecuador: Are Ecuadorian biocontrol programs in decline? Anartia, 33(2), 7-26.

Dzhanokmen, K. A. (2009). Review of Kazakhstan species of the genus Pachyneuron Walker, 1833 (Hymenoptera: Chalcidoidea: Pteromalidae). Zoosystematica Rossica, 18(1), 73-82.

Fidelis, E. G., do Carmo, D., Santos, A. A., de Sá Farias, E., da Silva, R. S., & Picanço, M. C. (2018). Coccinellidae, Syrphidae and Aphidoletes are key mortality factors for Myzus persicae in tropical regions: A case study on cabbage crops. Crop Protection, 112, 288-294.

Fortoul-Diaz, J. V., Huerta de La Peña, A., Lomeli-Flores, J. R., Hernández-Salgado, J. H., & Pérez-Magaña, A. (2020). Population fluctuation of Melanaphis sacchari (Zehntner) and identification of its predators in sorghum with traditional management in Puebla, Mexico. Southwestern Entomologist, 45(2), 553-562.

Iemma, L. G. R., Tavares, M. T., & Sousa-Silva, C. R. (2017). First report of Syrphophagus aphidivorus (Hymenoptera: Encyrtidae) on Aphidius ervi in alfalfa crops in State of São Paulo, Brazil. Brazilian Journal of Biology, 77(2), 422-423.

INAMHI. (2021). Meteorological and hydrological data. Instituto Nacional de Meteorología e Hidrología. Disponible en: http://www.inamhi.gob.ec/

Kos, K., Petrovic-Obradovic, O., Žikič, V., Petrovic, A., Trdan, S., & Tomanovic, Z. (2012). Review of interactions between host plants, aphids,primary parasitoids and hyperparasitoids in vegetable and cereal ecosystems in Slovenia. Journal of the Entomological Research Society, 14(3), 67-78.

MAG. (2020). Agroproductive data. Ministerio de Agricultura y Ganadería. http://sipa.agricultura.gob.ec/index.php/cifras-agroproductivas

Marín-Armijos, D., Quezada-Ríos, N., Soto-Armijos, C., & Mengual, X. (2017). Checklist of the flower flies of Ecuador (Diptera, Syrphidae). ZooKeys, 691, 163-199.

Marinoni, L., Morales, M., & Spaler, Í. (2007). Chave de identificação ilustrada para os gêneros de Syrphinae (Diptera, Syrphidae) de ocorrência no sul do Brasil. Biota Neotropica, 7(1), 145-160.

Maza, N., Kirschbaum, D. S., Núñez-Campero, S. R., Reguilón, C., & Jaime, A. P. (2022). Seasonality, richness and abundance of syrphid flies in greenhouse pepper agroecosystem. International Journal of Tropical Insect Science, 42, 479-493.

Mengual, X., Miranda, G. F. G., & Thompson, F. C. (2018). Unraveling Ocyptamus and the Baccha legacy (Diptera: Syrphidae): Redefinition of groups and new species descriptions. Zootaxa, 4461(1), 1-44.

Narendran, T. C., Santhosh, S., Peter, A., Sheeba, M., & Jilcy, M. C. (2007). A review of Pachyneuron species (Hymenoptera: Pteromalidae ) of Middle East. Journal of Environment and Sociobiology, 42(2), 119-138.

Quito-Avila, D. F., Alvarez, R. A., & Mendoza, A. A. (2016). Occurrence of maize lethal necrosis in Ecuador: a disease without boundaries? European Journal of Plant Pathology, 146(3), 705-710.

Santo, G. E., da Silva, E. B., & Figueiredo, E. (2018). Hoverfly (Diptera: Syrphidae) diversity in Tapada da Ajuda, Lisbon - a preliminary study. Revista de Ciências Agrárias, 41(Especial), 133-140.

Singh, G., & Singh, M. (2018). Seasonal incidence of different insect-pests in Kharif maize. Journal of Pharmacognosy and Phytochemistry, 7(3), 3666-3669.

Suganya, A., Saravanan, A., & Manivannan, N. (2020). Role of Zinc nutrition for increasing Zinc availability, uptake, yield, and quality of maize (Zea mays L.) Grains: An Overview. Communications in Soil Science and Plant Analysis, 51(15), 2001-2021.

Sullivan, D. J., & Völkl, W. (1999). Hyperparasitism: Multitrophic ecology and behavior. Annual Review of Entomology, 44, 291-315.

Tek, S. E., & Okyar, Z. (2018). A contribution to the knowledge of parasitoids of insects associated with Rosaceae species from Edirne Province, European Turkey. Acta Biologica Turcica, 31(3), 86-101.

Tougeron, K., & Tena, A. (2019). Hyperparasitoids as new targets in biological control in a global change context. Biological Control, 130, 164-171.

Van Emden, H. F., & Harrington, R. (2007). Aphids as Crop Pests. CABI Publishing. 717 pp.

Villa-Ayala, P., Sánchez-Rivera, G., Rodríguez-Vélez, B., & Castrejón-Ayala, F. (2020). Parasitoids and hyperparasitoids associated with the sugarcane aphid, Melanaphis sacchari (Zehntner), in Morelos, Mexico. Southwestern Entomologist, 45(2), 563-566.

Xiao, H., Jiao, T. Y., & Huang, D. W. (2009). Pachyneuron (Hymenoptera: Pteromalidae) from China. Oriental Insects, 43, 341-359.

Zamora-Mejías, D., & Hanson, P. E. (2017). Clave dicotómica para especies parasitoides e hiperparasitoides (Hymenoptera) de áfidos (Hemiptera: Aphididae) de Costa Rica. Agronomía Mesoamericana, 28(3), 565-575.