Predicting Phenology of Green Peach Aphid (Homoptera: Aphididae) using Degree-Days

Abstract

A degree-day model for predicting the phenological events of green peach aphid, Myzus persicae (Sulzer), was developed on both primary (peach and nectarine) and secondary (potato) host plants. A degree-day method, mean-minus-base, was applied to predict 5 significant phenological events of holocyclic M. persicae . Occurrences of egg hatch, 1st alate, and alate emigration from primary host plants were observed at 24, 332, and 509 base 4°C degree-days (DD). On potato plants, immigration of M. persicae commenced at 864 DD and peak migration occurred at 1,278 DD. The timing of these phenological events in both primary and secondary hosts was not predictable in the chronological time scale. However, this study indicated that M. persicae phenology can be predicted precisely using a degree-day method.