Abstract
The effects of short duration intercrops on the population dynamics of the cassava whiteflies Aleurotrachelus socialis Bondar and Trialeurodes variabilis (Quaintance) were investigated under outbreak conditions in Colombia. Whitefly egg densities per leaf and per plant were evaluated biweekly from experimental plots containing a regional cultivar of cassava in monoculture and intercropped with cowpea and with maize. Both species had lower egg densities on cassava mixed with cowpea than on cassava in monoculture with lower levels remaining in the intercrop for 6 months following cowpea harvest. Aleurotrachelus socialis eggs per plant were lower in cassava/maize systems than in monoculture throughout the cassava growth cycle with T. variabilis having fewer eggs per plant in the intercropped system only after maize harvest. Lower whitefly densities in multiple cropped systems during later stages of the cassava cycle resulted from effects of the intercrop on host-plant quality. Competition retarded cassava growth causing reductions in host-plant size well beyond the intercrop period. Greater whitefly numbers were associated with more vigorous plants and plant assemblages and hence were higher in monoculture.
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