Premium
Variation in annual and regional damage to sugar beet by pygmy beetle ( Atomaria linearis )
Author(s) -
COCHRANE J.,
THORNHILL W. A.
Publication year - 1987
Publication title -
annals of applied biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.677
H-Index - 80
eISSN - 1744-7348
pISSN - 0003-4746
DOI - 10.1111/j.1744-7348.1987.tb03253.x
Subject(s) - biology , sugar beet , sowing , agronomy , crop , ecology , botany
SUMMARY The reported amount of damage done by pygmy beetle to the sugar‐beet crop varies greatly with year and with region. Annual variation in damage is most strongly correlated with soil temperatures of the previous August, implying improved breeding success in warm summers. The value of predicting damage using this relationship is discussed. Damage is most severe in areas of intensive beet growing, particularly on low‐lying areas around The Wash. There was no relationship between damage and the numbers caught in a 12.2 m suction trap in the spring. It is suggested that much of the damage is done by beetles which are present in the beet fields at or shortly after sowing, having arrived there before the great majority fly in May‐July.