Does monogeny enable gall midges (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae) to regulate their sex ratio?
2012
Tabadkani, S.M., University of Tehran, Karaj (Iran Islamic Republic). Dept. of Plant Protection | Ashouri, A., University of Tehran, Karaj (Iran Islamic Republic). Dept. of Plant Protection | Farhoudi, F., University of Tehran, Karaj (Iran Islamic Republic). Dept. of Plant Protection
Monogeny, the production of unisexual broods by individual females, is widely recorded in gall midges (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae). In this paper, we examined the sex ratio of the offspring of the monogenous predatory gall midge Aphidoletes aphidimyza attacking low and high abundances of Aphis gossypii. Two consecutive generations of female gall midges were presented with either a low or high abundance of aphids in each generation and the sex ratio of their progenies determined. There was no difference between the sex ratio of the progenies that developed on the high or low abundance of A. gossypii in the two generations. Apparently, the females did not regulate the number of female and male progenies, or adjust the numbers of male or female's eggs they produced in response to the changes in the abundance of prey. Results of this study do not support the theory of sex ratio regulation proposed for monogenous gall midges. It is likely that the skewed sex ratio in most species of monogenous gall midges is a consequence of differential mortality of male and female progenies under harsh conditions. The finding that male and female larvae did not differ in the number of aphids they require to complete their development supports this claim.
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