Effect of Plant Species on Survivorship and Duration of Nymphal Stage in Leptocorisa chinensis (Hemiptera: Alydidae)

Nymphs of Leptocorisa chinensis Dallas were reared on seed heads of various plant species to investigate this bug’s host range. Hatched nymphs were released onto gramineous and nongramineous species. Twenty-four hours after release, the percentage of nymphs that had settled on the plants varied from >90% in all but one gramineous species to 50% or less in the nongramineous species. It is therefore considered that nymphs can discern gramineous plants from nongramineous plants. Nymphs were reared until adult emergence, and the survivors were counted. Nymphs that had been reared on Oryza sativa L. (rice), Digitaria ciliaris (Retz.) Koeler, Poa annua L., or some other gramineous species were able to grow to adulthood, whereas nymphs that had been reared on some other gramineous species such as Eleusine indica (L.) Gaertn., Paspalum dilatatum Poir., Elymus racemifer (Steud.) Tzvelev, Bromus catharticus Vahl, or nongramineous species were not able to grow to adulthood. Results indicate that suitable plant species for the development of nymphs are restricted to a fraction of all gramineous species. Among food gramineous plants, summer plant species that bear seeds in reproductive season of L. chinensis retained high survival rates in young instars compared with spring plant species.