Trans-regional migration of the beet armyworm, Spodoptera exigua (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), in North-East Asia.

The beet armyworm, Spodoptera exigua (Hübner) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), is a serious polyphagous insect pest worldwide. This species is known as a long-distance migrant, and previous studies on its migration have been mostly carried out in regions where it can overwinter. However, what pattern of se...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Xiaowei Fu, Hongqiang Feng, Zhongfang Liu, Kongming Wu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Public Library of Science (PLoS) 2017-01-01
Series:PLoS ONE
Online Access:http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC5571959?pdf=render
_version_ 1819205728519323648
author Xiaowei Fu
Hongqiang Feng
Zhongfang Liu
Kongming Wu
author_facet Xiaowei Fu
Hongqiang Feng
Zhongfang Liu
Kongming Wu
author_sort Xiaowei Fu
collection DOAJ
description The beet armyworm, Spodoptera exigua (Hübner) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), is a serious polyphagous insect pest worldwide. This species is known as a long-distance migrant, and previous studies on its migration have been mostly carried out in regions where it can overwinter. However, what pattern of seasonal migration this species exhibits in regions where it cannot overwinter (i.e., the 'summer breeding region') remains unknown. Here, we present data from 14-years of monitoring on a small remote island located in the center of the Bohai Strait, in northern China, by means of searchlight trapping and ovarian dissection. We found that the population size of this overseas migration varied significantly among years, with very large migrations in 2005, 2007, 2009, and 2014 that resulted in annual total catches of more than ten thousand individuals. In addition, nightly catches exhibited a significant inter-month variability, with the vast majority of S. exigua moths being trapped in August and September, (81.1 ± 3.6%), making S. exigua one of the most frequently encountered species in that period. The mean time from the earliest trap capture to the latest capture within a given year was 113 ± 22 d (range 57 d [2003] to 138 d [2008]). The sex ratio (females: males) was significantly less than 1:1 in each month, but the proportion of females showed an upward trend from June to October. The majority of trapped females in summer were mated (94.4 ± 10.7% in June, 80.0 ± 6.4% in July) and sexually mature (88.9 ± 11.1% in June, 61.8 ± 12.3% in July), suggesting the onset of mating and/or sexual maturation does not terminate the migration behavior in this species. These findings provide a good starting point for study of the trans-regional migration of S. exigua across different climate zones.
first_indexed 2024-12-23T04:56:19Z
format Article
id doaj.art-46ccd436278d445a975746c372d3818a
institution Directory Open Access Journal
issn 1932-6203
language English
last_indexed 2024-12-23T04:56:19Z
publishDate 2017-01-01
publisher Public Library of Science (PLoS)
record_format Article
series PLoS ONE
spelling doaj.art-46ccd436278d445a975746c372d3818a2022-12-21T17:59:20ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS ONE1932-62032017-01-01128e018358210.1371/journal.pone.0183582Trans-regional migration of the beet armyworm, Spodoptera exigua (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), in North-East Asia.Xiaowei FuHongqiang FengZhongfang LiuKongming WuThe beet armyworm, Spodoptera exigua (Hübner) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), is a serious polyphagous insect pest worldwide. This species is known as a long-distance migrant, and previous studies on its migration have been mostly carried out in regions where it can overwinter. However, what pattern of seasonal migration this species exhibits in regions where it cannot overwinter (i.e., the 'summer breeding region') remains unknown. Here, we present data from 14-years of monitoring on a small remote island located in the center of the Bohai Strait, in northern China, by means of searchlight trapping and ovarian dissection. We found that the population size of this overseas migration varied significantly among years, with very large migrations in 2005, 2007, 2009, and 2014 that resulted in annual total catches of more than ten thousand individuals. In addition, nightly catches exhibited a significant inter-month variability, with the vast majority of S. exigua moths being trapped in August and September, (81.1 ± 3.6%), making S. exigua one of the most frequently encountered species in that period. The mean time from the earliest trap capture to the latest capture within a given year was 113 ± 22 d (range 57 d [2003] to 138 d [2008]). The sex ratio (females: males) was significantly less than 1:1 in each month, but the proportion of females showed an upward trend from June to October. The majority of trapped females in summer were mated (94.4 ± 10.7% in June, 80.0 ± 6.4% in July) and sexually mature (88.9 ± 11.1% in June, 61.8 ± 12.3% in July), suggesting the onset of mating and/or sexual maturation does not terminate the migration behavior in this species. These findings provide a good starting point for study of the trans-regional migration of S. exigua across different climate zones.http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC5571959?pdf=render
spellingShingle Xiaowei Fu
Hongqiang Feng
Zhongfang Liu
Kongming Wu
Trans-regional migration of the beet armyworm, Spodoptera exigua (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), in North-East Asia.
PLoS ONE
title Trans-regional migration of the beet armyworm, Spodoptera exigua (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), in North-East Asia.
title_full Trans-regional migration of the beet armyworm, Spodoptera exigua (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), in North-East Asia.
title_fullStr Trans-regional migration of the beet armyworm, Spodoptera exigua (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), in North-East Asia.
title_full_unstemmed Trans-regional migration of the beet armyworm, Spodoptera exigua (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), in North-East Asia.
title_short Trans-regional migration of the beet armyworm, Spodoptera exigua (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), in North-East Asia.
title_sort trans regional migration of the beet armyworm spodoptera exigua lepidoptera noctuidae in north east asia
url http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC5571959?pdf=render
work_keys_str_mv AT xiaoweifu transregionalmigrationofthebeetarmywormspodopteraexigualepidopteranoctuidaeinnortheastasia
AT hongqiangfeng transregionalmigrationofthebeetarmywormspodopteraexigualepidopteranoctuidaeinnortheastasia
AT zhongfangliu transregionalmigrationofthebeetarmywormspodopteraexigualepidopteranoctuidaeinnortheastasia
AT kongmingwu transregionalmigrationofthebeetarmywormspodopteraexigualepidopteranoctuidaeinnortheastasia