Quantitative Assessment of the Predators of Nezara viridula Eggs and Nymphs within a Soybean Agroecosystem Using an Elisa 1

Abstract

Twenty-seven species of insects and spiders representing 6 orders and 15 families were tested for both egg and nymphal predation of Nezara viridula (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) using an enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The efficiency of each predator species was determined by a combination of its population density and results of the ELISA. Two predator complexes comprized of 8 species plus Cocinellidae larvae as a group, accounted for 91.4% and 95.4% of the egg and nymphal predation, respectively. Predation had to be viewed in the context of a complex which changed in its temporal composition.