The more, the better? Effect of density on the growth of the lesser mealworm, Alphitobius diaperinus (Panzer) (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae)

IF 4.7 3区农林科学 Q1 ENTOMOLOGY

Journal of Insects as Food and Feed Pub Date : 2023-12-29 DOI:10.1163/23524588-00001034

G. Baliota, C. Rumbos, C. G. Athanassiou

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Abstract

Understanding the concept of larval density scaling in mealworm farming enables us to analyze and compare the growth patterns of these species and their overall productivity in terms of produced insect biomass. This paper explores the impact of larval density on the development of the lesser mealworm, Alphitobius diaperinus (Panzer) (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae). Seven different larval densities were examined in laboratory trials, ranging from 7.5 to 53 larvae per cm2, while the volumetric density per vial was consistent through the experiment at 10 larvae per cm3. The results showed a significant effect of larval density, restricted though to specific developmental traits of A. diaperinus larvae. Based on the results, the highest overall yield and biomass production was achieved at 53 larvae per cm2, however, this density resulted in prolonged development time and decreased larval growth and feed consumption metrics. It is suggested that a larval density of 30.3 larvae per cm2 could offer a favorable balance for achieving optimal biomass efficiency in terms of the time required for harvest, growth performance, feed utilization and economic feasibility. Nevertheless, to the best of our knowledge, this is the first work on the effect of larval density on the performance of A. diaperinus larvae and aims to contribute to the increase of the profitability of A. diaperinus mass-rearing production systems.

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越多越好？密度对小黄粉虫（Alphitobius diaperinus (Panzer) ）（鞘翅目：黄粉虫科）生长的影响

了解黄粉虫养殖中幼虫密度比例的概念，有助于我们分析和比较这些物种的生长模式及其在生产昆虫生物量方面的整体生产力。本文探讨了幼虫密度对小黄粉虫（Alphitobius diaperinus (Panzer) ）（鞘翅目：黄粉虫科）发育的影响。在实验室试验中考察了七种不同的幼虫密度，范围从每平方厘米 7.5 到 53 条幼虫不等，而每个小瓶的体积密度在整个试验中保持一致，即每立方厘米 10 条幼虫。结果表明，幼虫密度有明显的影响，但仅限于A. diaperinus幼虫的特定发育特征。结果表明，每平方厘米 53 头幼虫的总体产量和生物量最高，但这一密度导致发育时间延长，幼虫生长和饲料消耗指标下降。我们认为，幼虫密度为每平方厘米 30.3 条幼虫时，可在收获所需时间、生长表现、饲料利用率和经济可行性等方面取得有利平衡，实现最佳生物量效率。尽管如此，据我们所知，这是第一项关于幼虫密度对海鲈幼虫生长性能影响的研究，旨在为提高海鲈大规模饲养生产系统的盈利能力做出贡献。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Journal of Insects as Food and Feed Agricultural and Biological Sciences-Insect Science

CiteScore

7.00

自引率

17.60%

发文量

133

期刊介绍： The Journal of Insects as Food and Feed covers edible insects from harvesting in the wild through to industrial scale production. It publishes contributions to understanding the ecology and biology of edible insects and the factors that determine their abundance, the importance of food insects in people’s livelihoods, the value of ethno-entomological knowledge, and the role of technology transfer to assist people to utilise traditional knowledge to improve the value of insect foods in their lives. The journal aims to cover the whole chain of insect collecting or rearing to marketing edible insect products, including the development of sustainable technology, such as automation processes at affordable costs, detection, identification and mitigating of microbial contaminants, development of protocols for quality control, processing methodologies and how they affect digestibility and nutritional composition of insects, and the potential of insects to transform low value organic wastes into high protein products. At the end of the edible insect food or feed chain, marketing issues, consumer acceptance, regulation and legislation pose new research challenges. Food safety and legislation are intimately related. Consumer attitude is strongly dependent on the perceived safety. Microbial safety, toxicity due to chemical contaminants, and allergies are important issues in safety of insects as food and feed. Innovative contributions that address the multitude of aspects relevant for the utilisation of insects in increasing food and feed quality, safety and security are welcomed.