Demography and population projection of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Myzus persicae</Emphasis> (Sulz.) (Hemiptera: Aphididae) on five pepper (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Capsicum annuum</Emphasis> L.) cultivars

The green peach aphid, Myzus persicae (Sulzer) (Hemiptera: Aphididae), is a major pest of pepper. In this study, we collected data on the development, survival, fecundity, and proportion of apterous and alate forms of green peach aphid reared on five commercial pepper cultivars (Amiral, Erciyes, Mert, Mertcan, and Naz) at 25?±?1°C, 60?±?5% RH, and a photoperiod of 16:8 (L:D) h. We analyzed the life history raw data by using the age-stage, two-sex life table. The shortest development time (6.66 days) and highest fecundity (62.68 individuals) occurred on the Erciyes cultivar. The highest intrinsic rate of increase (r?=?0.332 d^?1), finite rate of increase (λ?=?1.394 d^?1), net reproductive rate (R₀?=?62.7 offspring) and shortest mean generation time (T?=?12.45 d) also occurred on the Erciyes cultivar; while the lower fitness occurred on the Amiral, Mertcan and Naz cultivars. Our results compared differences in the population growth rate of M. persicae on different pepper cultivars. This information will be useful to individuals working in pest management programs particularly those involving M. persicae.     

Investigation of Soil Concentrations of Persistent Organic Pollutants, Trace Elements, and Anions Due to Iron–Steel Plant Emissions in an Industrial Region in Turkey

The spatial distribution of several air pollutants emitted from iron–steel industries in Hatay-Iskenderun industrial region in Turkey was investigated by measuring their concentrations in soil. Collected soil samples (n?=?20) were analyzed for persistent organic pollutants (POPs; i.e., polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, polychlorinated biphenyls, polybrominated diphenyl ethers, and polychlorinated naphthalenes), anions, and trace elements. Generally, all measured POP concentrations and marker trace elements for iron–steel industry (Zn, Pb, and Cu) were high relative to those reported previously for rural and urban areas around the world, and they were comparable to those measured recently in a similar industrial region (Aliaga, Izmir, Turkey). For all investigated POPs, elements, and anions, the highest concentrations were measured at points located north of the iron–steel industries where their emissions are transported by the prevailing southerly winds. The spatial distribution and levels of POPs, elemental, and anionic concentrations indicated that the iron–steel plants in Hatay-Iskenderun region are important sources for these pollutants. Statistically significant relationships between several organic and inorganic pollutants further confirmed that they are emitted by common sources (iron–steel plants).     

Functional response of the coccinellid predator <Emphasis Type="Italic">Adalia fasciatopunctata revelierei</Emphasis> to walnut aphid (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Callaphis juglandis</Emphasis>)

The functional response types and parameters of 3rd and 4th instar larvae, and adult females and males of a coccinellid predator, Adalia fasciatopunctata revelierei (Mulsant) (Col.: Coccinellidae), were evaluated at five different densities of Callaphis juglandis (Goeze) (Hemiptera: Aphididae) in order to understand their role for the aphid’s biological control. Experiments were carried out in petri dishes at 25 ± 1°C, 60 ± 10% r.h. and 16L:8D photoperiod in a controlled temperature room. All tested stages exhibited a Type II response determined by a logistic regression model. The attack rate (α) and handling time (T _h ) coefficients of a Type II response were estimated by fitting a “random-predator” equation to the data. Although the estimates of α for all stages of A. fasciatopunctata revelierei tested were similar, the longest T _h was obtained for 3rd instar larva because of the lower consumption rate at densities above 40 prey/day. Results indicated that the adult female has the highest predation of C. juglandis followed by 4th instar larvae, adult males and 3rd instar larvae. However, further field-based studies are needed to draw firm conclusions.     

The investigation of the effects of different feeding strategies on the growth of dolphin cichlid (Cyrtocara moori Boulenger, 1902) fish

This study was designed to investigate the effects of restrictive and cyclical feeding on the growth parameters of dolphin cichlid (Cyrtocara moorii Boulenger, 1902). In the study, 300 dolphin cichlid with an initial average weight of 1.12 ± 0.23 g were placed in 15 aquariums (each of them were 60 L). The five experimental groups, were designed as; the control group (A), feeding until satiation twice a day for 90 days, starvation for 1 week (B), starvation for 2 weeks (C), starvation for 1 day/satiation for 3 days (D), starvation for 1 day/satiation for 1 day (E); and the study was carried out in three repetitions. At the end of the study, groups B, C and D showed partial compensatory growth. The highest weight gains and specific growth rates were observed in control group (A), followed by groups B, C and D (p > 0.05). The lowest weight gain was observed in group E (p < 0.05). The feed conversion ratio did not show any significant difference between the groups (p > 0.05). In terms of feed consumption ratio, Control, C and D groups consumed similar amounts of feed (p > 0.05), while B and E groups consumed less feed (p < 0.05) than the other groups.