Temperature‐dependent fecundity of overwintered Scirtothrips dorsalis (Thysanoptera: Thripidae) and its oviposition model with field validation

BACKGROUND: A population model can be a useful tool to understand population dynamics under various environmental factors, and can be useful for evaluating the efficacy of new management practices. This study was conducted to construct an oviposition model of overwintered Scirtothrips dorsalis as a part of its whole population model. RESULTS: Adult longevity decreased with increasing temperature and ranged from 44.7 days at 13 °C to 9.9 days at 33 °C. S. dorsalis showed a maximum fecundity of 52.6 eggs female⁻¹ at 21 °C, which declined to 13.9 eggs female⁻¹ at 33 °C. Egg development time decreased from 28.41 days at 13 °C to 5.14 days at 29 °C and 5.5 days at 33 °C. An oviposition model was developed on the basis of three temperature‐dependent submodels: total fecundity, age‐specific oviposition rate and age‐specific survival rate models CONCLUSION: The oviposition model outputs followed the field occurrence patterns of S. dorsalis egg populations well, with a peak time discrepancy of 3–4 days. Our model should be useful for population modelling of S. dorsalis in agricultural crops. Furthermore, the present model can be independently used for the timing of spraying against S. dorsalis in IPM programmes of various crops. © 2014 Society of Chemical Industry