Colorado Potato Beetle (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) Survival and Fecundity after Short- and Long-Term Rearing on Artificial Diets

Survival, fecundity, and development time of Colorado potato beetles, Leptinotarsa decemlineata (Say), reared for a single generation or multiple generations (7 to 9) on one of three artificial diets or potato foliage and then switched back to potato foliage were measured. There were no consistent differences in any of the variables among diets regardless of whether the insects had been reared for one or many generations on artificial diets. Adult survival was about 80% at 10 wks after eclosion and <10% after 30 wks. Females produced an average of 977 and 796 eggs by week 16 after being reared for a single and for many generations, respectively, on artificial diets. Egg hatch rates ranged from 81% at week 3 to 14% on week 15, resulting in an average larval production of 516 and 552 by week 16 for females reared for a single and for many generations, respectively, on artificial diets. These results suggest that Colorado potato beetles reared on artificial diets can be used in subsequent tests on foliage without significant carryover effects from either short- or long-term rearing on these diets.