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Aphidius Parasitism of Aphids
Beautiful things can happen when Bios go to war,
Aphidius parasitism of aphids in eggplant and pepper hothouse crops.
There are 3 Aphidius parasites that are used as commercial biocontrols, A. colemani, A. ervi and A. matricariae.
All 3 can appear naturally and spontaneously, each has its own specialty.
A. colemani is the ultimate master when it comes to Aphis and Myzus aphid species. A. matricariae has a strong preference for Myzus persicae but not Aphis gossipii. A. ervi parasitizes only the aphid species that colemani wont go for like Macrosiphum euphorbiae.
Within the span of only 2 days after hatching, Aphidius species can parasitize hundreds of aphids, quickly replacing each enemy with a soldier.
About two days after the egg is oviposited into the aphid, an outer shell starts to form on the host aphid developing into a hard, tan shell called a ‘Mummy’ while the baby aphidius develops off the host aphids body it is now encased in.
A few days later, once fully developed, the adult Aphidius emerges from a perfect circular door it cuts in the ‘mummy’ shell’ and flies away in search for more aphids to parasitize.
When it comes to aphids, don’t wait. Stop the problem as soon as it arises.
Spidermites
Spider mites are masters of construction and travel . Once an area has been depleted of food, they will construct bridges and waterfalls in order to find new areas to suck dry.
Feltiella(or feltiella acarisuga ) is a native predator to BC and in the right conditions, can rapidly overtake hotspots with an incredible response in numbers. This gall midge flies into many crops, pulled by signals being sent by the damaged plants, where she deposits her eggs on leaves abundant with food….spider mites.
Once they emerge, the bright yellow-orange larvae go to work. They will consume between 15-80 ( dependant on SM stage, eggs etc) spider mites per day. 4-6 days of feasting later, they spin a cottony cocoon and another 4-6 days later, the adult hatches and finds new territory to take over.
In case you want to give their population a boost, they are also available through most of the biocontrol companies to introduce in your crop.
Contact us for a crop assessment to determine what the most appropriate situation is for your crops.