The response of sycanus aurantiacus ishikawa et okajima (hemiptera: reduviidae) to color polymorphisms larvae of spodoptera exigua (hubner) (lepidoptera: noctuidae)

Abstract

his study aims to evaluate the predatory behavior, preference and functional response of S. aurantiacus in color polymorphism larvae of S. exigua. The predatory behavior and preference test of S. aurantiacus using green and dark brown color larvae of S. exigua. Functional response test was carried out with 5 treatments of larvae population density with 10 replications. The results showed that S. aurantiacus prefers to dark brown larvae of S. exigua than green. The time taken by predators to find the first and subsequent prey was faster in dark brown larvae than in green, both on low or high larval density. The search time for the first prey on dark brown larvae was 22.7 minutes (at high density) and 39.3 minutes (at low density) while those on green larvae were 26.5 minutes and 42.7 minutes. S. aurantiacus showed type-II functional response to the density rate of S. exigua larvae both dark brown and green with the line equation respectively Y = 1,284x / 1 + 0,056x; R2: 0.96; a: 0,107; Th: 0.52 (dark brown larvae) Y = 1.32x / 1 + 0.063x; R²: 0.952; a: 0,109; Th: 0.58 (green larvae).