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" Diet Matters in the Growth of Captive African White-Spotted Assassin Bug Platymeris biguttatus (Hemiptera: Reduviidae) "
Holmes, Maia
Kondratieff, Boris
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Latin Dissertation
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| Language of Document
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English
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| Record Number
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1053815
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| Doc. No
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TL52932
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| Main Entry
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Holmes, Maia
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| Title & Author
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Diet Matters in the Growth of Captive African White-Spotted Assassin Bug Platymeris biguttatus (Hemiptera: Reduviidae)\ Holmes, MaiaKondratieff, Boris
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| College
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Colorado State University
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| Date
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2020
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| Degree
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M.S.
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| student score
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2020
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| Note
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39 p.
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| Abstract
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The African white-spotted assassin bug, Platymeris biguttatus (L. 1767) (AWSAB) is a large bodied true bug, popular in both zoo and hobbyist living collections. The popularity of this species can be attributed to its high visibility, large colony size, and that reproduction occurs readily in captivity, traits that are uncommon for predacious arthropods. While colonies of AWSAB have been commonly kept in laboratories, zoos, and museum collections for decades, little research has been published describing the impact different prey species have on growth and survival in captivity. Due to the popularity of AWSAB as display animals, determining the optimal methods for captive rearing of AWSAB is crucial for long-term maintenance. My study focused on rearing AWSAB on different prey species and recording survival and growth rate (GR) of captive-bred offspring. African white-spotted assassin bug eggs were collected from mated females and hatched separately. Nymphs were kept individually and fed one of seven diets (n=210): crickets (Acheta domesticus L.) exclusively, Dubia cockroaches (Blaptica dubia Serville) exclusively, yellow mealworm larvae (Tenebrio molitor L.) exclusively, or a combination of these species. The number of days spent by individuals in each instar was recorded, as well as the total number of days lived. Results indicate that the species of prey offered influences the GR, with individuals given multiple species of prey reaching maturity faster. Therefore, steps should be taken to provide colonies of AWSAB a mixture of crickets, cockroaches, and mealworms instead of a diet exclusively of one species. If only one species of prey can be offered, it is best to offer cockroaches instead of crickets or mealworms exclusively. Survival may also be influenced by diet, with further research needed.
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| Descriptor
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Agricultural education
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Biology
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Entomology
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| Added Entry
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Kondratieff, Boris
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Colorado State University
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