Dry mass allocation in cereal plants and distribution of Metopolophium dirhodum and Sitobion avenae (Homoptera, Aphididae)
1991
Honek, A. (Vyzkumny Ustav Rostlinne Vyroby, Prague-Ruzyne (CSFR))
Both dry mass allocation into different organs of cereal plants, and distribution and abundance of cereal aphids vary with environmental conditions. The correspondence between these well established phenomena was investigated in winter wheat and spring barley. Maximum abundances of a leaf dwelling aphid, Metopolophium dirhodum and an ear dwelling Sitobion avenae were compared at sites with different host plant size and density, selected from within production crop stands. Abundance of M. dirhodum was positively correlated with the proportion allocated to leaves from the total dry mass of vegetative organs, and leaf area per tiller. Abundance of S. avenae in wheat correlated with relative seed size, i.e., average seed mass/shoot mass ratio. This ratio was high in small plants, which compensated negative effects of small body size by producing large seeds. In barley, a large proportion of S. avenae settled on awns, and the abundance of this species was positively correlated with relative awn size (dry awn mass/dry ear mass ratio). Both aphid species preferred host plants which allocated maximum mass into the organs on which each of the species preferred to settle.
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