Tracking aphid predation by lycosid spiders in spring-sown cereals using PCR-based gut-content analysis |
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| Institution: | 1. Department of Ecology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU), Box 7044, SE-750 07 Uppsala, Sweden;2. Department of Plant Biology and Forest Genetics, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU), Box 7080, SE-750 07 Uppsala, Sweden;1. Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate, Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark;2. Biodiversity Research Institute and Department of Evolutionary Biology, Ecology and Environmental Sciences, Universitat de Barcelona, Av. Diagonal 645, 08028 Barcelona, Spain;3. Finnish Museum of Natural History, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland;4. Department of Biology, Savaria University Center, Eötvös Lóránd University, Szombathely, Hungary;5. Department of Biology, Royal Museum for Central Africa, Tervuren, Belgium;6. Biosystematic Section, Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark;1. Department of Biological Sciences, 614 Rieveschl Hall, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH, 45221, USA;2. School of Environment & Natural Resources, The Ohio State University, 2021 Coffey Rd., Columbus, OH, 43210, USA |
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| Abstract: | Detection of prey DNA-remains in arthropod predators by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is useful when investigating food webs. In this study we estimated how long after a feeding event it was possible to detect mitochondrial COII DNA (331 bp) from an important aphid pest, Rhopalosiphum padi (Homoptera: Aphididae), in spiders of the genus Pardosa (Araneae: Lycosidae). Following laboratory evaluations we tested spiders collected in spring-sown cereals for aphid predation during two seasons. Aphids were digested rapidly in laboratory-fed predators and the time point when prey DNA could be amplified from 50% of the spiders was estimated to be 3.7 h. A total of 372 field- collected predators were analyzed by PCR and despite low aphid densities many spiders (26% in 2004 and 19% in 2005) tested positive for R. padi, indicating consumption of at least one aphid within a few hours before capture. The percentage of spiders that tested positive for R. padi DNA varied considerably between fields and logistic regression analysis revealed that the probability of detecting aphid DNA was significantly influenced by location and year. We conclude that Pardosa spiders, under certain conditions, frequently feed on R. padi and deserve special attention in conservation biological control. |
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