Fitness consequences of selecting young leaves for oviposition in the Hessian fly

Abstract

As well selecting particular genotypes for oviposition, female Hessian flies select particular sites within an individual host plant. The youngest leaves of the wheat plant typically receive the greatest numbers of eggs. We quantified the preference of the ovipositing female for the younger leaves and then studied the consequences of this preference for the feeding stages of the Hessian fly. The survival and growth of larva that eclosed from the egg on young versus old leaves was compared across different larval densities. Species 1: Diptera Cecidomyiidae Mayetiola destructor (Hessian fly)