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Advances in Understanding of the Ecology and Biodiversity of Coleoptera:...
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Advances in Understanding of the Ecology and Biodiversity of Coleoptera: Coccinellidae

A special issue of Insects (ISSN 2075-4450).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 April 2024) | Viewed by 3840

Special Issue Editors

Dr. António Onofre Soares

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
cE3c-ABG-Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Changes and Azorean Biodiversity Group, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of the Azores, 9501-321 Ponta Delgada, Portugal
Interests: ecology; evolution; biological control; invasion biology; Coccinellidae
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Helen E. Roy

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, Benson Lane, Crowmarsh Gifford, Oxfordshire OX10 8BB, UK
Interests: ecology; invasion biology; global environmental change; insect monitoring; Coccinellidae

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The family Coccinellidae (ladybirds) contains between 6000 and 7000 described species and they are important providers of services to terrestrial ecosystems. Not all species have been studied equally, as most studies focus on large, conspicuous generalists, invasive alien species, and those important for biological control. This means that many scientific gaps still persist, such as (i) the effect of global environmental change for individuals, species interactions, community structure, and dynamics and the resulting ecological and evolutionary feedbacks, (ii) more precise geographical biodiversity, especially on the African continent and parts of Asia, (iii) the lack of an evolutionary framework to place the described species into a subfamily-wide context, (iv) global opportunities for the monitoring and surveillance of Coccinellidae, (v) the assessment of the conservation status of the most threatened species, and (vi) strategies for conservation.

This Special Issue is an opportunity for scientists to share recent research on the biology, ecology, biodiversity, conservation, evolution, invasion biology, and biological control of ladybirds as a biological model.

Dr. António Onofre Soares
Prof. Dr. Helen E. Roy
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Insects is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • biology
  • ecology
  • biodiversity
  • conservation
  • evolution
  • invasion biology
  • biological control

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

19 pages, 6352 KiB  
Article
Diversity of Ladybird Beetles (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) in Tenerife and La Gomera (Canary Islands): The Role of Size and Other Island Characteristics
by Jerzy Romanowski, Piotr Ceryngier, Jaroslav Vĕtrovec, Christian Zmuda and Karol Szawaryn
Insects 2024, 15(8), 596; https://doi.org/10.3390/insects15080596 - 6 Aug 2024
Viewed by 382
Abstract
This paper provides new data on the ladybird beetles (Coccinellidae) from two islands in the Canary archipelago: Tenerife, the largest island, and La Gomera, the second smallest. As they clearly differ in size but are similar in location and geological age, they are [...] Read more.
This paper provides new data on the ladybird beetles (Coccinellidae) from two islands in the Canary archipelago: Tenerife, the largest island, and La Gomera, the second smallest. As they clearly differ in size but are similar in location and geological age, they are a suitable model for testing the species–area relationship. Our study shows that, in line with this main assumption of the theory of island biogeography, clearly more species occur on a large island (Tenerife) than on a small one (La Gomera). The field surveys documented the occurrence of 35 ladybird species on Tenerife (including 5 not previously reported from this island) and of 20 species on La Gomera (2 species new to the island). Coelopterus sp. collected on Tenerife (a single female that could not be identified to species) is the first record of this genus for the whole Canary Islands. Taking our data and previously published records into account, 47 species of Coccinellidae are known to occur on Tenerife and 26 species on La Gomera. Tenerife has by far the richest ladybird fauna of all the Canary Islands (the next in line, Gran Canaria, has 41 recorded species), but it also has the highest number of non-native ladybird species. All of the ten non-native species recorded in the Canary Islands are found on Tenerife, and for most of them, Tenerife was the island of their first appearance in the archipelago. This island, much more distant from the mainland than the other relatively large islands (Fuerteventura, Lanzarote), appears to be the main recipient of ladybirds immigrating to the Canary Islands. Tenerife can play this role probably because of its great habitat diversity and altitude variation, as well as intensive tourism and trade-related transport. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Understanding of the Ecology and Biodiversity of Coleoptera: Coccinellidae)
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9 pages, 900 KiB  
Article
Population Growth Parameters of Scymnus nubilus Fed Single-Aphid Diets of Aphis fabae or Myzus persicae
by Isabel Borges, Guillaume J. Dury and António O. Soares
Insects 2024, 15(7), 486; https://doi.org/10.3390/insects15070486 - 28 Jun 2024
Viewed by 881
Abstract
Life tables are an important tool to forecast the performance of biological control agents used in pest management programs, and they are often assessed in terms of population growth. In the present study, the suitability of the aphids Aphis fabae Scopoli and Myzus [...] Read more.
Life tables are an important tool to forecast the performance of biological control agents used in pest management programs, and they are often assessed in terms of population growth. In the present study, the suitability of the aphids Aphis fabae Scopoli and Myzus persicae (Sulzer) for the ladybird predator Scymnus nubilus Mulsant was assessed for the first time. For this, we evaluated and compared the life history traits of immature individuals and adults of the predator fed single-aphid diets and the consequences of the single-aphid diets for the demographic parameters. Scymnus nubilus that were fed A. fabae were significantly more fecund and presented a shorter immature development time than those fed M. persicae. The predators fed A. fabae had a significantly higher net reproductive rate, an intrinsic and finite rate of increase, while their doubling time was significantly lower than that of those fed M. persicae. The aphid species used in this study are new additions to the essential prey list of the ladybird, with the predator presenting a better biological performance than that found on the previously known essential prey species. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Understanding of the Ecology and Biodiversity of Coleoptera: Coccinellidae)
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14 pages, 2045 KiB  
Article
A Long Photoperiod Promoted the Development, Reproduction, and Predation of Harmonia axyridis Pallas (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) at an Average Greenhouse Temperature during the Winter
by Haixia Yu, Xinjuan Yuan, Zhiqiang Xie, Qiqi Zhang, Changying Zheng and Lijuan Sun
Insects 2024, 15(4), 214; https://doi.org/10.3390/insects15040214 - 22 Mar 2024
Viewed by 848
Abstract
To explore the feasibility of adjusting the photoperiod to regulate the life parameters and predation ability of Harmonia axyridis Pallas in greenhouses during the winter, life tables were constructed for H. axyridis under the three following photoperiods: 9L:15D (light/dark), 12L:12D, and 16L:8D at [...] Read more.
To explore the feasibility of adjusting the photoperiod to regulate the life parameters and predation ability of Harmonia axyridis Pallas in greenhouses during the winter, life tables were constructed for H. axyridis under the three following photoperiods: 9L:15D (light/dark), 12L:12D, and 16L:8D at 15 °C, an average greenhouse temperature during the winter when aphids severely damage vegetables. The effects of photoperiods on predation by this ladybird were tested in both laboratory and greenhouse settings. The results showed that increased illumination promoted the development and reproduction of H. axyridis; under medium and long photoperiods, the pre-adult periods were 3.61 days and 4.34 days shorter than that under the short photoperiod, respectively, and the fecundity increased by 1.78 and 2.41 times. Population parameters r, λ, and R0 increased as illumination time increased, whereas T decreased. Increased illumination also increased the predation by third- and fourth-instar larvae and adults. The amounts of predation by fourth-instar larvae and adults increased by 22.16% and 75.09% under the medium photoperiod, and those under the long photoperiod increased by 71.96% and 89.64%, respectively. The numbers of Myzus persicae Sulzer predated by H. axyridis under the long photoperiod were higher than those under the short photoperiod in a greenhouse, and the predation parameters were influenced. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Understanding of the Ecology and Biodiversity of Coleoptera: Coccinellidae)
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13 pages, 909 KiB  
Article
Functional Response and Intraspecific Competition of Three Ladybird Species Feeding on Aphids on Goji Berry Plants in Laboratory and Semi-Field Conditions
by Pengxiang Wu, Jia He, Huan Dong and Runzhi Zhang
Insects 2023, 14(11), 853; https://doi.org/10.3390/insects14110853 - 31 Oct 2023
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1214
Abstract
The aphid, Aphis gossypii Glover, is identified as a significant pest that causes severe damage to goji berries in China. To analyze the ladybird consumption of aphids, the functional responses of three ladybird species, Harmonia axyridis, Coccinella septempunctata, and Hippodamia variegata [...] Read more.
The aphid, Aphis gossypii Glover, is identified as a significant pest that causes severe damage to goji berries in China. To analyze the ladybird consumption of aphids, the functional responses of three ladybird species, Harmonia axyridis, Coccinella septempunctata, and Hippodamia variegata, and intraspecific competition among ladybird individuals were evaluated under laboratory conditions. Moreover, the practical impact of ladybirds on aphid population reduction was investigated in semi-field conditions. We found that all adult ladybirds of the three species exhibited a type II functional response toward aphids. According to Holling’s disc equation, H. axyridis exhibited the highest searching efficiency (a = 0.79), while C. septempunctata had the shortest handling time (Th = 5.07 min) among the three ladybird species studied. Additionally, intraspecific competition had a greater impact on H. variegata (m = 0.41) compared to the other two ladybird species. The semi-field study demonstrated that H. axyridis (83.9% reduction) and C. septempunctata (78.7% reduction) exhibited higher efficacy in reducing aphid populations compared to H. variegata (27.3% reduction). This study suggests that H. axyridis and C. septempunctata exhibit potential as effective biological control agents against aphids on goji berry plants and highlights the importance of considering intraspecific competition. However, the results obtained from laboratory and semi-field studies cannot be directly extrapolated to field conditions due to the simplification of these experimental systems. Future field studies are crucial in ensuring the effective implementation of a biological control program. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Understanding of the Ecology and Biodiversity of Coleoptera: Coccinellidae)
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