Update from the Rothamsted Insect Survey

Rothamsted Research have just issued the first Aphid News bulletin for 2013:

No news is good news .....

This spring we are witnessing one of the slowest starts to an aphid season in almost 50 years of continuous aphid monitoring. Despite a modest improvement in day-time temperatures we are still getting some night time frosts. No crop aphids were caught anywhere in our suction trap network during bulletin week 1 : 22-28 April. Crops are generally late as well, so the game is far from over.

Whilst the lack of aphids is good news for us, it’s bad news for aphid predators, which may be going hungry. This could result in them producing low numbers of offspring, which could lead to aphids escaping some elements of natural control later in the season.

You can find more information on the Insect Survey here: http://www.rothamsted.ac.uk/insect-survey/

Rosemary Collier : 03 May 2013 15:34 |  Comments (0) |  Report a problem