Oviposition, adult longevity and temperature effects on the eggs of Tetanocera elata (Fab.) (Diptera: Sciomyzidae): a potential biocontrol agent for slugs

• Published in: Journal of applied entomology (1986) Vol. 138; no. 9; pp. 670 - 676
• Main Authors: Hynes, T, Mc Donnell, R. J, Gormally, M. J
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin P. Parey 01.11.2014; Blackwell Publishing Ltd; Wiley-Blackwell; Wiley Subscription Services, Inc
• Subjects: adults; Biological and medical sciences; biological control; biological control agents; conventional farming; crop damage; egg; eggs; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; longevity; malacophagy; mass production; oviposition; phenology; Phytopathology. Animal pests. Plant and forest protection; production technology; profits and margins; Protozoa. Invertebrates; Sciomyzidae; slug predator; slugs; temperature; Egg; Biological control; Biological agent; Temperature effect; Gastropoda; Longevity; Slugs; slug predator; Pulmonata; malacophagy; Egg laying; mass production; Predator; Invertebrata; Mollusca
• ISSN: 0931-2048; 1439-0418
• DOI: 10.1111/jen.12120

Pestiferous slugs in organic and conventional farming systems damage crops, reduce yield and quality, and reduce profits; however, no biological control agent that is both efficacious and inexpensive has yet been developed. One potential biological control agent is the slug‐feeding Tetanocera elata (Fab.), for which scant scientific data are currently available regarding optimum growing conditions. This study examined the effect of constant temperatures (14, 17, 20, 23 and 26°C) and ambient outdoor and laboratory temperatures on the duration of the egg stage of T. elata. In general, mean and median duration of incubation decreased as temperatures increased, with the highest (52%) and lowest (20%) hatch rates occurring at 14 and 26°C, respectively. Longevity and oviposition rates for T. elata are discussed in the context of mass biocontrol production systems, and possible reasons for low hatch rates for eggs stored at 2–3°C are discussed in the context of the phenology of the species.