Population development of the Colorado potato beetle, Leptinotarsa decemlineata (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae), under individually- and group-reared conditions

AbstractThe Colorado potato beetle (CPB) is a serious pest of potato in China. To determine the effect of individual-rearing and group-rearing on its population growth and development, we studied its life tables and projected its population growth using the TWOSEX-MS Chart and TIMING-MS Char programs. Results showed that individually-reared CPBs were significantly better than that of group-reared CPBs, in terms of intrinsic rate of increase (0.07), finite rate of increase (1.07), net reproductive rate (39.93), and gross reproductive rate (221.23) compared to that of group-reared treatment (0.05; 1.05; 10.84; and 58.77). Additionally, individually-reared CPB populations had faster development, characterized by shorter generation cycles, and higher female survival rates, which produced more offspring per unit time, compared to the group-reared CPB population. However, in potato fields, the CPB are mostly found in groups and therefore the group-rearing method should be more effective for prediction and possible management of CPB populations. This study serves as a reference for an effective and biological prevention and control of the CPBs.Keywords: Colorado potato beetlesage-stage two-sex life tableindividual-rearinggroup-rearing AcknowledgmentsThe authors thank J. L. (Juan Liu) and X.L. (Xia Liu), H.Z.H. (Hengzhi Hu), and P.N. (Ping Niu) for their help during this research. Also, they thank LetPub (www.letpub.com) for language editing during the preparation of this manuscript.Author contributionsConceptualization, CL and JHL; Formal Analysis, HHS; Funding Acquisition, CL; Investigation, JHL; Methodology, CL and JHL; Project Administration, CL; Resources, CL; Writing: Original Draft Preparation, HHS; Writing: Review and Editing, CL. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.Disclosure statementThe authors report no conflicts of interest.Data availability statementThe data supporting the conclusions of this article are included within the article and its additional files.Additional informationFundingThis research was supported by the National Key R&D Program of China (2021YFD1400200); the National Natural Science Foundation of China (31660545); China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (2017M613305XB); Key Laboratory of Integrated Management of Crop Pests in Northwest Desert Oasis, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs (KFJJ201905).