College of Agriculture, University of Arizona (Tucson, AZ)
Abstract
Cotton aphid, Aphis gossypii Glover, fecundity, nymph development and honeydew production were studied in the laboratory. Apterous adult females produced an average of 1.7 nymphs per day and the nymphs (four instars) developed to adults in an average of 4.1 days at 26.7° C in the laboratory. Average longevity of adults was 16.1 days. More honeydew drops were produced by one-day old nymphs than three- or four-day old nymphs. Numbers of honeydew drops produced on a day to day basis were highly variable and did not show a distinct pattern of production. More honeydew drops, sugars and progeny were produced by adults at 26.7° C compared with 15.6 or 32.2° C. Increasing times of exposure of clean cotton lint to aphids and the resulting increasing amounts of honeydew sugars under laboratory and field conditions were significantly related to increasing cotton lint stickiness as measured with a thermodetector
