Heterogeny in cages: Age-structure and attractant availability impacts fertile egg production in the black soldier fly, Hermetia illucens
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Abstract
Adult behaviour is a growing area of interest for those researching the black soldier fly, Hermetia illucens (L.) (Diptera: Stratiomyidae), which is affected by underlying demography and spatiotemporal patterns. This greenhouse experiment examined the interaction of age-related effects that can accrue within heterogeneous breeding populations and the potential benefits of delaying an oviposition attractant in concert with restricting mean cohort age. The impetus for this investigation was because if flies are introduced into a mating-cage before old flies are removed or culled, a population of mixed-age and mating-status is created. We hypothesized this population dynamic potentially reduces quality among available mate choices, especially in small cages where flies might not be able to spatially segregate. Metrics for fitness included copulation frequency, oviposition frequency, weight of eggs produced, and hatch percentage. “Same”-aged cohorts (maximum 4 days old at introduction) performed better than highly heterogeneous (1–16 days old) “mixed” cohorts by mating 2.32-times more frequently and laying 6.58-times more eggs that were 1.17-times more fertile, despite 1.41 fewer observed oviposition events. Delaying the attractant had a significant effect on egg collection weight and led to 1.25-times higher egg yields for same-age populations compared to mixed-aged cohorts where the delaying the attractant had no significant effect. These results are likely due in part to an immediate desire to lay eggs by older females as well as haphazard egg laying in cage material, which was 2.09-times higher for mixed cohorts. The results highlight the importance of constraining the age of breeding populations and removing old adults from cages to improve yields and better manipulate behaviour. For those for whom this is logistically unfeasible, providing an attractant box initially and continuously may be the preferred method to trap more eggs from heterogeneous populations.
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Heterogeny in cages: Age-structure and attractant availability impacts fertile egg production in the black soldier fly, Hermetia illucens
In: Journal of Insects as Food and FeedSearch for other papers by N.B. Lemke in
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Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, P.R. China
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Texas A&M AgriLife, 600 John Kimbrough Boulevard, Suite 509, 7101 TAMU, College Station, TX 77843-7101, USA
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Abstract
Adult behaviour is a growing area of interest for those researching the black soldier fly, Hermetia illucens (L.) (Diptera: Stratiomyidae), which is affected by underlying demography and spatiotemporal patterns. This greenhouse experiment examined the interaction of age-related effects that can accrue within heterogeneous breeding populations and the potential benefits of delaying an oviposition attractant in concert with restricting mean cohort age. The impetus for this investigation was because if flies are introduced into a mating-cage before old flies are removed or culled, a population of mixed-age and mating-status is created. We hypothesized this population dynamic potentially reduces quality among available mate choices, especially in small cages where flies might not be able to spatially segregate. Metrics for fitness included copulation frequency, oviposition frequency, weight of eggs produced, and hatch percentage. “Same”-aged cohorts (maximum 4 days old at introduction) performed better than highly heterogeneous (1–16 days old) “mixed” cohorts by mating 2.32-times more frequently and laying 6.58-times more eggs that were 1.17-times more fertile, despite 1.41 fewer observed oviposition events. Delaying the attractant had a significant effect on egg collection weight and led to 1.25-times higher egg yields for same-age populations compared to mixed-aged cohorts where the delaying the attractant had no significant effect. These results are likely due in part to an immediate desire to lay eggs by older females as well as haphazard egg laying in cage material, which was 2.09-times higher for mixed cohorts. The results highlight the importance of constraining the age of breeding populations and removing old adults from cages to improve yields and better manipulate behaviour. For those for whom this is logistically unfeasible, providing an attractant box initially and continuously may be the preferred method to trap more eggs from heterogeneous populations.
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