| Publication Type: | Journal Article |
| Year of Publication: | 1989 |
| Authors: | A. R. D. Wheatley, Wightman, J. A., Williams, J. H., Wheatley, S. J. |
| Journal: | Bulletin of Entomological Research |
| Volume: | 79 |
| Date Published: | 1989 |
| Keywords: | Aproaerema, Aproaerema modicella, Arachis, Arachis hypogaea, aridity, density, distribution, distribution & abundance, distribution & abundance responses to plant drought stress, drought, drought stressed food plant effects, Empoasca, Empoasca kerri, food plant, food plant drought stress relationship, food plants, Frankliniella, Frankliniella schultzei, groundnut, habitat, Hyderabad, India, population, Scirtothrips, Scirtothrips dorsalis, stress effect on distribution & abundance |
| Abstract: | Four groundnut genotypes were grown in a randomized block design across a drought-stress gradient to determine the influence of this factor on insect distribution in the 1985-86 post-rainy season near Hyderabad, in peninsular India. The leaf-mined Aproaerema modicella (Deventer) was most abundant on the most stressed plants. The cicadellid Empoasca kerri Pruthi had the reverse distribution. The thrips Frankiniella schultzei (Trybom) and Scirtothrips dorsalis Hood were at first densest where drought stress was least. Their distribution subsequently reversed and, as the condition of their hosts worsened, they again became most abundant at the wetter end of the gradient. Bud necrosis disease caused most mortality where drought stress was highest. A subsidiary experiment indicated that the intensity of overhead irrigation did not influence the density of A. modicella. There were marked genotype effects: JL 24 carried the highest density of insects and was most susceptible to bud necrosis disease; NC Ac 343 had the lowest leafminer and cicadellid populations. M 13 and ICGS 11 had intermediate characteristics. |