Hippodamia convergens

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Convergent lady beetle
Sucking on an aphid, Rock Creek Park
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Coleoptera
Infraorder: Cucujiformia
Family: Coccinellidae
Genus: Hippodamia
Species:
H. convergens
Binomial name
Hippodamia convergens

Hippodamia convergens, commonly known as the convergent lady beetle, is one of the most common lady beetles in North America and is found throughout the continent. Aphids form their main diet and they are used for the biological control of these pests.

Range

Convergent lady beetles are native to North America, but have also been imported and established in South America by importing beetles from California.[1]

Geographic Range

Hippodamia convergens is a species of beetle that is widely distributed throughout North America. H. convergens can be found throughout all parts of North America, from California to New York. Populations in California, New York, Arizona, and Kansas have been previously studied.[2] There are populations of H. convergens throughout Central America as well. One study compared a population of Hippodamia convergens from Iowa to one from Honduras. The population from Iowa developed on average 2-5 days faster than the population from Honduras, showing that H. convergens generally thrive in North America. However, the study also showed that all populations involved had similar fecundity and survivability, demonstrating flourishing populations of H. convergens outside of North America.[3]

Habitat

Hippodamia convergens tend to be more successful and more likely to survive to adulthood in warmer temperatures.[2] In some areas, they aggregate on sunflower patches in a group that includes other species, though H. convergens make up the majority of this population, after emigrating from wheat fields. They use the petioles of the sunflowers as a source of hydration, particularly in the arid summer months. The sap from the sunflowers, serving as a source of hydration as well as a source of partial nutrition, is shown to be effective in sustaining survival of H. convergens particularly when food is difficult to come by. They populate grasslands, forests, agricultural fields, gardens, and national parks.[4]


Life cycle

The female lady beetle lays 200 to 300 eggs over several months during spring and early summer. The eggs are small and spindle-shaped and are laid near the prey in upright batches of fifteen to thirty eggs. The larvae are dark and somewhat alligator-shaped.[5] Once the larvae begin feeding, they grow quickly and molt four times over a period of up to a month. The pupal stage lasts about a week and mating takes place soon after adult eclosion. If the food supply is abundant, the female may start laying within about a week of mating, but if it is scarce, she may wait for up to nine months.[6]

Biology

Convergent lady beetles adult aggregation

The first larvae that hatch in each batch may start by eating the unhatched eggs. This may provide energy for the larvae before they find any aphids. Fourth-instar larvae may consume about fifty aphids per day and adults may eat about twenty. When aphids are scarce, the adults can eat honeydew, nectar and pollen or even petals and other soft parts of plants.[7] However they must consume aphids in order to reproduce.[8] In the western United States, these beetles may spend up to nine months in diapause in large aggregations in mountain valleys, far from their aphid food sources. In spring, the adults spread out and search for suitable sites to lay their eggs where aphids are plentiful. This dispersal trait is especially marked in this species as compared to other lady beetles.[5]

Biological control

Convergent lady beetles are also used for augmentative biological control to temporarily increase predator numbers to control aphids. The species is available commercially in North America, but because of the overwintering habits of non-reproductive adults, released beetles tend to quickly disperse from their release site. Adults released in enclosed settings such as greenhouses can contribute to lower aphid numbers.[9]

Food resources

Both larvae and adult Hippodamia convergens primarily consume aphids.They are active hunters and the larvae will start searching for prey almost immediately upon hatching. 

Aphids are small insects that consume plant sap. Aphids tend to aggregate on plants to feed on the sap, so H. convergens generally find aggregations of aphids to prey on as their food source. H. convergens feed on other soft-bodied insects such as scales and thrips. They will consume pollen and nectar from flowers when the usual insect prey is scarce.

Hippodamia convergens are also shown to exhibit cannibalistic behaviors when food is especially scarce.[10]

Parental care

Hippodamia convergens are shown in studies as one of few species that is able to undergo reproductive diapause while having minimal access to food and nutrients. Studies have shown that reproductive diapause is an adaptive female strategy. However, the longer they remain in reproductive diapause and wait to undergo reproduction, the lower their chances of being able to reproduce are, which increases the chance they die without reproducing at all. Therefore, delaying reproduction for too long increases the chance of female H. convergens being unable to pass down their genes. H. convergens use the limited food resources to develop fat bodies and postpone the onset of reproduction until they can find a consistent and sufficient food source. ref>Michaud, J.P.; Qureshi, Jawwad A. (November 2006). "Reproductive diapause in Hippodamia convergens (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) and its life history consequences". Biological Control. 39 (2): 193–200. doi:10.1016/j.biocontrol.2006.04.004. ISSN 1049-9644. Retrieved 5 April 2024.</ref> If food is plentiful, females will generally oviposit around five does after mating. If food is more scarce, the females will wait for up to a couple of weeks after mating to oviposit. When mating and laying eggs, they lay clusters of on average 10-30 yellow eggs on plants where a large amount of insect prey is present. [10]

Aggregations of Hippodamia convergens that occur in the spring are generally made up of immature adult females. These females are not ready to mate and therefore do not oviposit on the plants where they aggregate. This makes it difficult to use an aggregation of H. convergens for aphid control during the spring, as pest control would not be continually maintained by a new generation. A hormone produced upon maturation also causes a behavior of migrating long distances, which explains the dispersal shortly after aggregation, even when aphids - prey - are still present. Studies show that H. convergens generally disperse from an aggregation and leave a particular feeding ground after 1-2 days, even when a population of aphids is still present. After reaching the adult stage, females need to consume nutrients, particularly protein and fat, for a week before they have matured and are able to ovulate. This leads to mixed results in H. convergens ability as aphid pest control. While they are effective in clearing out aphids while aggregated on respective plants, they tend to migrate after a relatively brief period of time. This means that plants would have to be continuously artificially populated with H. convergens to serve as effective aphid pest control.

Upon reaching the adult stage, female Hippodamia convergens feed on fats and proteins for a week. After this period, the production of juvenile hormone increases, which stimulates ovary maturation. The production of juvenile hormone also causes a behavior that results in the H. convergens migrating long distances.[11] Hippodamia convergens are used, particularly in regions of California, for aphid control, as they are the only predators of aphids that can be easily collected and sold. This is due to the fact that they tend to aggregate around aphid populations. 

They are one of the few species that are currently collected from mass aggregations in the wild to be distributed as pest control.

However, they are not the most effective aphid control. Aggregation tends to occur before the adults have fully matured, so they are unable to lay eggs at that point. Additionally, they tend to disperse from the aggregation before mating and laying eggs in their aggregation, so eggs are not left behind to hatch and continue the cycle of controlling the aphid population. [12]


--Behavior== Hippodamia convergens use environmental cues to seek out their prey, aphids. Aphids feed on phloem in large amounts due to its lack of amino acids. Because they feed on such large amounts, they excrete excess sugars in the form of honeydew. The honeydew secretions accumulate in the area of the aphid aggregation. H. convergens use chemical cues and pheromone detection to seek out their prey via the honeydew secretions. These secretions serve as a cue to H. convergens about the location of aphid aggregations, leading them right to their food source. Honeydew composition varies with aphid species, age, and level of ant tending. These honeydew secretions can also provide H. convergens with information on the vulnerability and prey suitability of a specific aphid population. While H. convergens have been observed to travel across plants regardless of the presence or amount of honeydew, they spend a significantly longer period of time on plants where honeydew is present. This makes sense given that the presence of honeydew is a signal that aphids are inhabiting that particular plant. The presence of honeydew induces a searching behavior in H. convergens.

Hippodamia convergens larvae generally move from one plant to another by traveling across the leaves from the original plant to the new one. However, they are able to travel via soil if the leaves are uncrossable. For example, a plant may have been dislodged by wind or water and pushed further away. H. convergens determine the suitability of an aphid aggregation for preying on aphid abundance, size, escapability, and nutritional quality. In theory, there could be many plants infested with aphids in an area, but H. convergens will only go after a few of the plants based on the suitability of aphids for preying. [12]


Natural enemies

Entomopathogenic fungi used as biopesticides such as Metarhizium anisopliae, Paecilomyces fumosoroseus, and Beauveria bassiana can also infect larvae.[1] Just as Hippodamia convergens feed on other insects, aphids, they themselves are prey to a few different types of insects. Large big-eyed bugs (Geocoris bullatus) and damsel bugs (Nabis alternatus) prey on H. convergens eggs. Hippodamia convergens can also potentially contain parasites. The braconid wasp, Dinocampus coccinellae, has been found parasitizing H. convergens. [10]

Hippodamia convergens may be a host for different invertebrate parasites such as Dinocampus coccinellae, Homalotylus terminalis, and Tetrapolipus hippodamiae.[13]

Physiology

The adult population of Hippodamia convergens commonly flies in order to gain a vantage point to search for prey. This also enables them to move more quickly and gain a vantage point to search for prey. [14]


References

  1. ^ a b Obrycki, John J.; Kring, Timothy J. (January 1998). "Predaceous Coccinellidae in Biological Control". Annual Review of Entomology. 43 (1): 295–321. doi:10.1146/annurev.ento.43.1.295. PMID 15012392.
  2. ^ a b Obrycki, John J.; Tauber, Maurice J. (15 November 1982). "Thermal Requirements for Development of Hippodamia convergens (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae)". Annals of the Entomological Society of America. 75 (6): 678–683. doi:10.1093/aesa/75.6.678. ISSN 1938-2901. Retrieved 5 April 2024.
  3. ^ Obrycki, John J.; Krafsur, Elliot S.; Bogran, Carlos E.; Gomez, Luis E.; Cave, Ronald E. (2001). "Comparative Studies of Three Populations of the Lady Beetle Predator Hippodamia convergens (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae)". The Florida Entomologist. 84 (1): 55–62. doi:10.2307/3496663. ISSN 0015-4040. Retrieved 5 April 2024.
  4. ^ Michaud, J.P.; Qureshi, Jawwad A. (November 2006). "Reproductive diapause in Hippodamia convergens (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) and its life history consequences". Biological Control. 39 (2): 193–200. doi:10.1016/j.biocontrol.2006.04.004. ISSN 1049-9644. Retrieved 5 April 2024.
  5. ^ a b "Hippodamia convergens | (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) | Convergent Lady Beetle". Cornell University. Archived from the original on 2000-10-19. Retrieved 2024-04-06.
  6. ^ Balduf, W. V. (1935). The Bionomics of Entomophagous Coleoptera. St. Louis, MO: John S. Swift Co.
  7. ^ Hagen, Kenneth S. (1960). "Biological Control with Lady Beetles". Plants and Gardens: The Brooklyn Botanic Garden Record. 16 (3): 28–35.
  8. ^ Haug, G. W. (1938). "Rearing the Coccinellid Hippodamia convergens on Frozen Aphids". Annals of the Entomological Society of America. 31 (2): 240–248. doi:10.1093/aesa/31.2.240.
  9. ^ Obrycki, John J.; Harwood, James D.; Kring, Timothy J.; O'Neil, Robert J. (November 2009). "Aphidophagy by Coccinellidae: Application of biological control in agroecosystems". Biological Control. 51 (2): 244–254. Bibcode:2009BiolC..51..244O. doi:10.1016/j.biocontrol.2009.05.009.
  10. ^ a b c "convergent ladybug - Hippodamia convergens". entnemdept.ufl.edu. Retrieved 5 April 2024.
  11. ^ Flint, Mary Louise; Dreistadt, Steve H. (July 2005). "Interactions among convergent lady beetle (Hippodamia convergens) releases, aphid populations, and rose cultivar". Biological Control. 34 (1): 38–46. doi:10.1016/j.biocontrol.2005.03.019. ISSN 1049-9644. Retrieved 5 April 2024.
  12. ^ a b Purandare, Swapna R.; Tenhumberg, Brigitte (June 2012). "Influence of aphid honeydew on the foraging behaviour of Hippodamia convergens larvae". Ecological Entomology. 37 (3): 184–192. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2311.2012.01351.x. ISSN 0307-6946.
  13. ^ Bjørnson, S. (March 2008). "Natural enemies of the convergent lady beetle, Hippodamia convergens Guérin-Méneville: Their inadvertent importation and potential significance for augmentative biological control". Biological Control. 44 (3): 305–311. Bibcode:2008BiolC..44..305B. doi:10.1016/j.biocontrol.2007.10.001. ISSN 1049-9644.
  14. ^ Stowe, Hannah E.; Michaud, J. P.; Kim, Tania N. (2021). "Floral Resources Enhance Fecundity, but Not Flight Activity, in a Specialized Aphid Predator, Hippodamia convergens (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae)". Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution. 9. doi:10.3389/fevo.2021.748870. ISSN 2296-701X. Retrieved 5 April 2024.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: unflagged free DOI (link)

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Hippodamia convergens.
Wikispecies has information related to Convergent lady beetle.
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