Long-Qing Shi: Institute of Applied Ecology, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, China. Key Laboratory of Integrated Pest Management for Fujian-Taiwan Crops, Ministry of Agriculture, Fuzhou, China.
Zhao-Hua Zeng: Institute of Applied Ecology, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, China. Institute of Plant Protection, Fujian Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Fuzhou, China.
Huo-Shui Huang: Institute of Applied Ecology, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, China. Quanzhou Entry-exit Inspection and Quarantine Bureau of P.R.C, Quanzhou, China.
Yong-Mei Zhou: Institute of Applied Ecology, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, China. Key Laboratory of Integrated Pest Management for Fujian-Taiwan Crops, Ministry of Agriculture, Fuzhou, China.
Liette Vasseur: Institute of Applied Ecology, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, China. Key Laboratory of Integrated Pest Management for Fujian-Taiwan Crops, Ministry of Agriculture, Fuzhou, China. Department of Biological Sciences, Brock University, St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada. lvasseur@brocku.ca.
Min-Sheng You: Institute of Applied Ecology, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, China. Key Laboratory of Integrated Pest Management for Fujian-Taiwan Crops, Ministry of Agriculture, Fuzhou, China.
Tea green leafhoppers (Empoasca spp.) are considered one of the major pests in tea plantations in Asia. They are, however, difficult to monitor due to their size and flying and jumping abilities. In this study, we clarified the identification of the leafhopper species encountered in our study plantations and examined the impacts of sampling methods in estimating population abundance and sex ratio. The natural sex ratio of eggs, nymphs, and adults of tea green leafhopper and the differences between male and female were tested. Despite previous reports that Empoasca vitis (Goethe) was the major leafhopper present in our study area, our results showed that only Empoasca onukii Matsuda was found. Variation in population size over time and bias in sex ratio depending on the sampling methods were found in our monitoring experiments. In general, adult males were more attracted to yellow sticky cards than females. We believe that because female leafhoppers should be the target in pest control, yellow sticky cards may not be the most suitable monitoring or effective control of tea green leafhopper. We demonstrate the importance of understanding the implications of sampling techniques for population estimation and sex ratio bias as well as how temporal variation may affect monitoring results. Precise monitoring should take into consideration the different life histories of male and female.
