ISSN:
1573-1561
Keywords:
Aphidius ervi
;
host location
;
olfaction
;
plant volatiles
;
aphid feeding
;
Acyrthosiphon pisum
;
Aphis fabae
;
wind tunnel
;
Y-tube olfactometer
;
tritrophic interactions
Source:
Springer Online Journal Archives 1860-2000
Topics:
Biology
,
Chemistry and Pharmacology
Notes:
Abstract The responses of femaleAphidius ervi to odors from a host food plant (Vicia faba), host aphids (Acyrthosiphon pisum), nonhost aphids (Aphis fabae), and aphid-plant complexes were investigated in a specially designed wind tunnel and a Y-tube olfactometer. In single-target (no-choice) and two-target (dual-choice) experiments, plant volatiles played a crucial role in the host foraging behavior ofA. ervi. The odor from theA. pisum-plant complex elicited the strongest responses byA. ervi females, followed by the odor from plants previously damaged by the feeding ofA. pisum. There was a significantly weaker response to odor fromA. pisum in the absence of the plant and to undamaged plants. Similarly, mechanically damaged plants and plants infested with the nonhost aphidA. fabae did not elicit strong responses. A plant that had been damaged byA. pisum and subsequently washed with distilled water was as attractive as an unwashed, previously infested plant.Aphidius ervi probably overcomes the reliability-detectability problem by selectively responding to herbivore-induced, volatile, semiochemical cues emitted by the first trophic level and by distinguishing between the volatiles induced by host and nonhost aphids.
Type of Medium:
Electronic Resource
URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/BF02272400
