Interspecific competitive effects and annual differences in predation of Empoasca onukii (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae) by wandering spiders

Empoasca onukii Matsuda is an important pest widely distributed in tea areas in China, which greatly affects tea production and quality. The long-term use of chemical control measures will cause environmental pollution. To better utilize wandering spiders that have strong competitive effects on the predation of E. onukii, we conducted a path analysis between the populations of E. onukii and wandering spiders in 3 tea plantations in 2020 and 2021. The wandering spider species that had the greatest direct and indirect effects on the population of E. onukii were analyzed by the magnitude of the path coefficient. Then, a gray system analysis was conducted to determine the closeness of the populations of different wandering spiders to E. onukii by the magnitude of gray correlation coefficient. Finally, the competition coefficients were calculated to determine the competitiveness of wandering spiders. In addition, considering the influence of the number of E. onukii on the interspecific competition of wandering spiders, the gray correlation coefficient and competition coefficient were combined to derive the competition intensity index, which was used to analyze the competitiveness of wandering spiders in a comprehensive manner. The highest competition coefficients in 2020 and 2021 were found for Ebrechtella tricuspidata Fabricius (Araneae: Thomisidae) (X2, 0.5329) and Clubiona reichlini Fabricius (Araneae: Clubionidae) (X4, 0.8475), respectively. The magnitude of the competition intensity index showed that the most competitive wandering spider in 2020 and 2021 was E. tricuspidata (X2, 0.5692) and C. reichlini (X4, 0.8892), respectively. The least competitive spider in both years was Plexippus setipes Karsch (Araneae: Salticidae) (X7). The more competitive the wandering spider is, the closer it is to E. onukii in terms of numbers, and the more dominant it is in feeding on E. onukii. By reasonably protecting and utilizing the competitive E. tricuspidata (X2) and C. reichlini (X4), we can achieve sustainable and effective control of E. onukii.