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. 2023 Nov 8;14(11):862.
doi: 10.3390/insects14110862.

Effects of Temperature and Host Plant on Hedgehog Grain Aphid, Sipha maydis Demographics

Mason Taylor  1 , Rafael Hayashida  1 , William Wyatt Hoback  1 , John Scott Armstrong  2
Affiliations

Effects of Temperature and Host Plant on Hedgehog Grain Aphid, Sipha maydis Demographics

Mason Taylor et al. Insects. .

Abstract

The hedgehog grain aphid (HGA), Sipha maydis Passerini (Hemiptera: Aphididae), is a cereal pest in many regions of the world. It was first documented in the United States in 2007, and it has a range that appears to be expanding. Understanding the effects of temperature and the host plant on HGA development, survival, and reproduction is crucial for understanding its population dynamics, potential distribution, and management strategies. In this study, we investigated the effects of different temperatures and host plants on the demographic parameters of HGA and determined the supercooling point (SCP) for their first instars, apterous adults, and winged adults. Our findings revealed that temperatures between 20 °C and 25 °C were optimal for HGA development and reproduction, with parthenogenetic females producing approximately 60 offspring in their lifetimes. However, HGA development was hindered below 10 °C and above 35 °C. The SCP for HGA was similar (mean ± S.E.: -16.280 ± 0.532 °C) among nymphs, apterous adults, and winged adults. We compared the HGA demographics with the demographics of the sorghum aphid (SA), Melanaphis sorghi (Theobald, 1904), on wheat, millet, and three cultivars of sorghum under a constant temperature. The HGA completed its life cycle on all the tested host plants with a similar reproduction, demonstrating a lack of resistance to HGA by a sorghum that is resistant to SA. By expanding our knowledge of host plant- and temperature-dependent development, reproduction, and mortality in S. maydis, we can better predict and manage future HGA populations in small grain crops.

Keywords: exotic aphid; fecundity; generalist; lifetable; resistance.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interest or personal relationships that could have influenced the work reported in this paper. The funders did not play a role in the study design, data collection, analysis, interpretation, writing of the manuscript, or decision to publish the results. All authors also declare that they have no competing interests, either directly or indirectly related to the work submitted for publication. Additionally, this study did not involve the use of any humans or animals that required informed consent or submission to an animal welfare committee for evaluation.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Supercooling point ± SE (°C) of different development stages of the hedgehog grain aphid, Sipha maydis, reared under laboratory conditions (21 ± 2 °C and 14:10 L:D). a. The means did not differ significantly based on an F test (F = 0.27; DFnumdf;demdf = 2; 57; p > 0.05).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Demographic parameters of the hedgehog grain aphid (HGA) and the sorghum aphid (SA) raised with different sorghum genotypes. (A) Number of offspring; (B) longevity; (C) pre-reproductive period (d); (D) intrinsic rate of increase (rm). Box plots followed by the same lower-case letter for HGA and upper-case letter for SA are not significantly different according to a Tukey test (α = 0.05); ns = no significant difference between HGA and SA within the same host according to a t test (α = 0.05); * = significant difference (p < 0.05) according to a t test. The boxplot summarizes: minimum, first quartile (Q1), median (Q2), third quartile (Q3), and maximum. The white dots represent outlier values.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Demographic parameters of the hedgehog grain aphid (HGA) and the sorghum aphid (SA) raised with different sorghum genotypes. (A) Number of offspring; (B) longevity; (C) pre-reproductive period (d); (D) intrinsic rate of increase (rm). Box plots followed by the same lower-case letter for HGA and upper-case letter for SA are not significantly different according to a Tukey test (α = 0.05); ns = no significant difference between HGA and SA within the same host according to a t test (α = 0.05); * = significant difference (p < 0.05) according to a t test. The boxplot summarizes: minimum, first quartile (Q1), median (Q2), third quartile (Q3), and maximum. The white dots represent outlier values.
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