Harmonia axyridis Pallas (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) is an invasive generalist predator, which has been used as a biological model to investigate several research questions and is also an effective biocontrol agent against agricultural pests. Its laboratory colonies are often maintained on natural prey that are costly, and thus alternative dietary regimens are required. We studied the influence of four different food regimens on the developmental and reproductive life history traits of H. axyridis, including body size and the population demographic parameters. The tested diet regimes were: Ephestia kuehniella Zeller (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) eggs, a commercial mix of E. kuehniella and Artemia sp. (Anostraca: Artemiidae) cysts, a liver-based artificial diet, and the natural prey, Aphis gossypii Glover (Hemiptera: Aphididae). The food regimes affected the investigated life parameters of H. axyridis in various ways. Larvae developed successfully and in the shortest time on moth eggs, but for H. axyridis reared on the artificial diet development was not successful. The mixture of moth eggs and brine shrimp cysts supported the rearing of H. axyridis. However our findings suggest its use only when no other suitable feedstuff is available. The life table approach used in this study could improve the standardized comparison among diet regimes, thus optimizing the rearing protocols of the species.

中文翻译：

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实验室饲养丑角瓢虫的潜在饮食方案

异色瓢虫（Coleoptera：Coccinellidae）是一种侵入性的捕食性天敌，已被用作生物学模型来研究若干研究问题，并且还是一种有效的生物防治剂，可有效防治农业害虫。它的实验室菌落通常维持在昂贵的天然猎物上，因此需要替代的饮食方案。我们研究了四种不同的食物养生方式对嗜酸线虫的发育和生殖生活史特征的影响，包括体型和人口统计学参数。测试的饮食方案为：埃弗氏菌卵（鳞翅目：Pyralidae）鸡蛋，克氏杆菌和卤虫的商业混合物sp。（Anostraca：Artemiidae）囊肿，一种基于肝脏的人工饮食和天然猎物Aphis gossypii Glover（Hemiptera：Aphididae）。饮食方式以各种方式影响了木乃伊的调查生活参数。幼虫能在最短的时间内用蛾卵发育，但由于人工饮食养育了木虱，开发并不成功。蛾卵和卤虫囊肿的混合物支持的饲养异色瓢虫。但是，我们的发现表明仅在没有其他合适的饲料可用时才使用它。本研究中使用的生命表方法可以改善饮食方案之间的标准化比较，从而优化该物种的饲养方案。