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RESPONSE OF MELANOTUS COMMUNIS (COLEOPTERA: ELATERIDAE) LARVAE TO SOIL TEMPERATURE AND MOISTURE1

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  31 May 2012

Merle Shepard
Merle Shepard
Affiliation:
Department of Entomology and Economic Zoology, Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina
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Abstract

Melanotus communis (Gyllenhal) larvae were introduced into temperature gradient columns containing moist or dry organic soil. In other experiments certain sections of the columns contained moist soil while soil in the remaining sections was dry.

Moist soil caused M. communis larvae to aggregate at higher temperature levels (24 °C) whereas dry soil evoked a positive response to the coolest level (10 °C). Cool (10 °C), moist sections attracted most of the wireworms while sections containing moisture at the highest temperature level caused a bimodal pattern of aggregation with M. communis larvae moving to both cool–dry or hot–moist conditions.

Differences in geotactic responses by M. communis larvae did not occur when the column was positioned vertically or horizontally.

Type
Articles
Information
The Canadian Entomologist , Volume 105 , Issue 4 , April 1973 , pp. 577 - 580
Copyright
Copyright © Entomological Society of Canada 1973

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