Field-Cage Studies of Native Egg Predators of the Pink Bollworm In Southern California Cotton12

Abstract

Native egg predators of Pectinophora gossypiella (Saunders) were studied in field cages in cotton during the summer of 1970 in the Coachella Valley, CA. The percent of egg masses attacked, egg consumption within egg masses attacked, and overall egg consumption by the predators were studied for different densities of the same predator species, for different predators at the same density, and for different locations of egg masses on the plants. Chrysopa carnea Stephens, Geocorus pallens Stal, and Nabis americoferus Carayon showed potential as pink bollworm egg predators; Notoxus calcaratus Horn and Spanogonicus albofasciatus (Reuter) showed little promise; and Geocorus punctipes (Say) and Orius tristicolor (White) were intermediate.