ISHS Acta Horticulturae 422: International Conference on Integrated Fruit Production
INVESTIGATION OF GROUND BEETLE COMMUNITIES IN DIFFERENTLY TREATED APPLE ORCHARDS IN HUNGARY |
| Authors: | V. Markó, F. Kádár, F. Kecskés |
| Abstract:
The ground beetle communities were investigated at the ground level of the apple orchards in Szarkás / Hungary / by pitfall trapping during 1992 – 1994. The orchard was divided into three different plots. One was commercial /COM/, mainly sprayed with organophosphorous insecticides and two were integrated pest management/IPM/ plots. The habitats were investigated herbologically in each plot./between the rows and in the rows/ and in different types of surroundings. During our investigations a total of 20 680 ground beetles were collected. The dominant species in the orchards were Harpalus flavescens, H. froelichi, H. tardus and at the margin were the Calathus ambiguus and C. erratus. The carabid communities were more or less the same in all investigated apple plots but in IPM plots the size of the communities were 2–8 times higher. The ground beetle communities at the margin were completely other than in apple orchard plots. It was determined that the carabid communities were lower but more diverse there. The lower densities were probably caused by the more dense covering of weeds, which could caused decreased movement of individuals. We learned that mowing in IPM plots between the rows did not cause the increase of covering but the species richness there was higher significantly in comparison with the COM plot. The covering and species richness of grass-like plants in the rows/between the trees/ was higher; there were fewer carabids caught in those traps which were placed here than in traps that were placed between the rows. | |
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