Effects of three aphid species (Homoptera: Aphididae) on development, survival and predation of Chrysoperla carnea (Neuroptera: Chrysopidae)

The effects of three aphid species (fourth instars only), Aphis gossypii Glover; Myzus persicae (Sulzer) and Lipaphis erysimi (Kaltenbach), on immature development, survival and predation of the common green lacewing, Chrysoperla carnea (Stephens), were determined in the laboratory. Survival rates of C. carnea from first stadium to adult emergence were significantly different among larvae fed different aphid species. When larvae were fed A. gossypii and M. persicae, 94.4±3.3% (mean±SE) and 87.6±5.1% of individuals developed to adults, respectively; whereas only 14.9±3.4% of individuals developed to adults when fed L. erysimi. The developmental durations of C. carnea larvae were also significantly different among larvae fed the three aphid species. The developmental duration from first stadium to adult emergence was shortest when larvae were fed A. gossypii (19.8±0.4 d), followed by M. persicae (22.8±0.2 d), and then L. erysimi (25.5±0.4 d). The total number of fourth stadium aphids consumed by C. carnea larvae differed significantly among individuals fed different aphid species. Chrysoperla carnea consumed more A. gossypii (292.4) and M. persicae (272.6) than L. erysimi (146.4). Although total numbers of aphids consumed by the three C. carnea larval stadia differed significantly, the proportions of aphids consumed by each larval stadium to the total number of aphids consumed were similar, 3.9–7.1% by the first stadium, 12.0–16.8% by the second stadium, and 78.1–83.9% by the third stadium.