Abstract
<i>Zelus vespiformis</i> Hart (Hemiptera: Reduviidae) is a native predator which has been recorded frequently predating on some insects pest of coffee plantations in Colombia. In order to know its biological parameters, its life cycle and fertility life table were evaluated under laboratory conditions at Cenicafé, using <i>Galleria mellonella</i> Linnaeus (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae). To obtain the duration and survival of immature stages, 716 eggs were followed and 23 adults pairs (♂: ♀) were established to construct the life table. The mean duration from egg to adult was 112.65±0.76 days; the egg incubation period was 23.22±0.21 days; and nymphs had 11.75% survival to the adult stage. The longevity of adults was 25.86±2.94 and 30.39±2.26 days for females and males respectively. The mean number of eggs per female was 105.55±10.75. The parameters of the fertility life table were net reproductive rate R0=5.19 (2.54–10.28); generation time T=106.75 (101.7–114.0) days, intrinsic growth rate rm=0.015 (0.009–0.022), and finite growth rate λ=1.015 (1.009–1.023). This information forms a biological basis for initiating studies that pretend to determine the potential of this insect as predator.
Highlights
Studies carried out by Cenicafé with the coffee pest ‘Chamusquina’ coffee bug Monalonion velezangeli Carvalho & Costa (Hemiptera: Miridae) in Colombia, have resulted in field observations of some natural enemies of nymphs and adults of this species, including insects of the family Reduviidae (Hemiptera) [1]
Because of the lack of knowledge of the biological characteristics of Z. vespiformis, which may be exercising some control of M. velezangeli in the field, we studied the biological and reproductive parameters of Z. vespiformis fed on an alternative diet under controlled laboratory conditions; with the aim of supporting future studies that intend to test the predator’s potential as biological controller
The duration of the egg phase was longer than reported for other species of Zelus: 16.87±1.76 days for Z. longipes [9], 17.00±0.28 days for Sycanus galbanus Distant (Hemiptera: Reduviidae) [18], and 9±1.0 days for Z. tetracanthus [7]
Summary
Studies carried out by Cenicafé with the coffee pest ‘Chamusquina’ coffee bug Monalonion velezangeli Carvalho & Costa (Hemiptera: Miridae) in Colombia, have resulted in field observations of some natural enemies of nymphs and adults of this species, including insects of the family Reduviidae (Hemiptera) [1]. Harpactorinae are diurnal insects that inhabit various weeds, shrubs and crops [2]. They feed on other insects from different orders; they are considered generalist predators [3]. The reduviid Z. vespiformis is a Neotropical species distributed from Central America to northern South America; it is reported in Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Panama, Trinidad and Tobago, and Venezuela [5]. Its depredatory capacity on M. velezangeli was tested in confined field conditions by Laiton et al 2018 (personal communication), who found a consumption of 2.8±0.67 M. velezangeli individuals in 5 hours
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