Previous observations of cannibalism have been made in the aphid Acyrthosiphon pisum （L.）： this article seeks to quantify factors contributing to such be- haviors. We observed and quantified the responses of a numb...Previous observations of cannibalism have been made in the aphid Acyrthosiphon pisum （L.）： this article seeks to quantify factors contributing to such be- haviors. We observed and quantified the responses of a number of clones and life stages to varying levels of starvation, in the form of increasingly desiccated Vicafaba L. plants （receiving 50, 25, or 10 mL every second day） or a complete absence of host plant. We found that, while the longest incidences of cannibalism are carried out by juveniles （F = 3.45, P = 0.019, df = 3） and targeted at adults, the starvation treatments had the most significant effect on the prevalence of cannibalism in mature A. pisum （F ---- 2.24, P = 0.025, df = 9）. Furthermore, there was no difference between the prevalence or dura- tion of cannibalistic activities within and between different clones （P 〉 0.05 in all cases）, though juveniles were more likely to target unrelated aphids （V = 6 112, P = 0.011）, and spent more time feeding on aphids from the same culture （V = 6 062, P = 0.018）.展开更多
文摘Previous observations of cannibalism have been made in the aphid Acyrthosiphon pisum （L.）： this article seeks to quantify factors contributing to such be- haviors. We observed and quantified the responses of a number of clones and life stages to varying levels of starvation, in the form of increasingly desiccated Vicafaba L. plants （receiving 50, 25, or 10 mL every second day） or a complete absence of host plant. We found that, while the longest incidences of cannibalism are carried out by juveniles （F = 3.45, P = 0.019, df = 3） and targeted at adults, the starvation treatments had the most significant effect on the prevalence of cannibalism in mature A. pisum （F ---- 2.24, P = 0.025, df = 9）. Furthermore, there was no difference between the prevalence or dura- tion of cannibalistic activities within and between different clones （P 〉 0.05 in all cases）, though juveniles were more likely to target unrelated aphids （V = 6 112, P = 0.011）, and spent more time feeding on aphids from the same culture （V = 6 062, P = 0.018）.
