Abstract:
The system and method for harvesting eggs from arthropods includes a modular arthropod egg repository that is essentially a plurality of substrates connected along a common edge in a tablet-type configuration. The egg repository is deployed in an arthropod containment vessel. Arthropods ambulate onto a repository substrate and implant eggs. Operators can selectively remove entire repositories or individual substrates (as required) from the containment vessel. The system allows operators to utilize batch, continuous, and semi-continuous culture methods to rear target arthropods.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for collecting arthropod eggs for commercial production of arthropods. Specifically, the invention relates to a method and apparatus for collecting beetle eggs (e.g.  Colemegilla maculata ) for commercial production of arthropods that can be applied widely in the care and culture of terrestrial organisms that are important in agriculture, horticulture, the terrarium and pet hobby, environmental screening and toxicity testing, science instruction and education, gardening, and the education-entertainment fields. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The pink-spotted lady beetle,  Coleomegilla maculata  De Geer (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae), is a generalist predator native to North America. In nature, it feeds on a wide range of soft-bodied insects and mites in managed and unmanaged landscapes. This quality makes  C. maculata  a desirable natural alternative to conventional pesticides and other chemical insect pest control means, particularly in a greenhouse setting. In its native range,  C. maculata  does not overwinter in houses or become a nuisance pest.  C. maculata  is amenable to rearing in artificial (i.e. non-natural) environments, which makes it a good prospect for commercial production. However, systems for rearing  C. maculata  on a large scale are virtually unknown. 
     One obstacle to commercial production of  C. maculata  and other similar arthropods is the lack of an efficient means to harvest the arthropod eggs. In nature, females prefer to oviposit on plants with epidermal hairs (trichomes). In laboratory conditions, individual females frequently oviposit on smooth surfaces such as containers of food or water or on the smooth surface of a petri dish. Removal of these eggs from the smooth surfaces is possible, but time consuming and often results in damaged eggs. Additionally, in a commercial-sized arthropod enclosure, multiple eggs are laid in open areas that are easily visible and accessible to other arthropods within the enclosure. Consequently the eggs are frequently cannibalized by the other arthropods. The eggs are also cannibalized by the arthropod larvae as they emerge from nearby hatched eggs. 
     The need exists for an arthropod egg containment apparatus and system that minimizes arthropod cannibalism and enables operators to quickly and efficiently harvest (i.e. remove) large volumes of arthropod eggs. The system and method described herein comprises a compact, modular device and associated system for safely, simply, inexpensively, and efficiently, containing and culturing terrestrial arthropod eggs. Batch, continuous, and semi-continuous culture methods are supported by the devices described herein. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     This disclosure is directed to an arthropod egg repository. The repository comprises a plurality of substrates connected by a single connecting means. The substrates are positioned so that arthropods ambulate onto the substrate and deposit eggs. The substrates are structured so that an operator can manually remove individual substrates from the connecting means and thereby remove implanted eggs from the repository. 
     This disclosure is also directed to an arthropod rearing system. The rearing system includes a closed arthropod containment vessel. An arthropod egg repository is disposed within the vessel. The egg repository comprises at least three substrates connected together along one common edge. The substrates are structured to enable an arthropod to ambulate onto a substrate and implant an egg on the substrate. The substrate configuration enables an operator to remove a single substrate with an implanted egg, and then re-deploy the remaining substrates in the containment vessel. 
     This disclosure is further directed to a method of rearing arthropods. A plurality of substrates are connected together along a common edge to form a tablet-type configuration. The connected substrates comprise an egg repository. The egg repository is placed in a containment vessel so that arthropods ambulate onto the substrates and implant eggs. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of the hanging refugia. 
         FIG. 2  is an assembly view of the arthropod containment system including the hanging refugia. 
         FIG. 3  is a perspective view of the arthropod containment system disclosed in  FIG. 2 . 
         FIG. 4  is a perspective view of an alternative embodiment of the arthropod containment system. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     As generally shown in  FIG. 1 , an important element of the system described herein comprises a “hanging refugia”  10 . For the purposes of this disclosure, the refugia  10  is an arthropod egg repository comprising a plurality of substrates  14  configured in a tablet-like arrangement that enables target arthropods to ambulate between the substrates  14  and deposit eggs  12  on the surface of the substrates  14 . The substrates  14  are generally secured along at least one edge by a separate and distinct connection means  16 . For the purposes of this disclosure, the separate and distinct “connection means”  16  preferably comprises a chemical connection means (such as an adhesive) or a mechanical means (such as a clamp or pin), but may also include a magnetic connection means or any other separate and distinct connection means known in the art. 
     In the preferred embodiment, the substrates  14  are generally rectangular, however they may be any shape known in the art. The substrates  14  may be treated and/or saturated with various substances designed to attract egg-bearing females and to encourage the successful development of the eggs  12 . These substances include various chemical attractants (such as food-based attractants) as well as actual nutrients for supporting the hatching larva. The substrates  14  may also be configured to mimic (to the extent possible) the textured surface of leaves found in the natural environment. 
     The substrates  14  may be comprised of a treated (or untreated) paper or polymer material. Alternatively, the substrates may be comprised of any substance known in the art. Further, the hanging refugia  10  may be designed to be selectively removed from an arthropod containment vessel  22  as a single unit, or as single individual substrates  14 . The removal of individual substrates  14  allows an operator to sample or target only selected substrates where eggs  12  are implanted. 
       FIG. 2  shows an assembly drawing of one embodiment of an arthropod rearing system  20  that incorporates the hanging refugia  10  shown in  FIG. 1 .  FIG. 3  shows the system  20  in an assembled configuration. The system  20  comprises a relatively large, closed containment vessel  22 . A removable egg and larvae collection module  24  (not clearly visible in  FIG. 3 ) is secured to the containment vessel  22  by a lid-type connection device  24 . Although  FIGS. 2 and 3  show two refugia apparatuses  10 , one or more than two of the apparatuses  10  may be attached to a single collection module  24 . 
     Although the containment vessel  22  is shown as a cube-shaped jar, other shapes and configurations should be considered within the scope of this disclosure, consistent with the function of containing the target arthropods. Similarly, although a screw-type jar lid is shown, other types of collection module  24  connection devices  26  are also contemplated and should be considered to be disclosed herein. 
       FIG. 4  shows an alternative configuration of the system  22 . The embodiment disclosed in  FIG. 4  shows the containment vessel as horizontally oriented. This configuration may facilitate sampling and removal of individual substrates  14  and may also have other advantages. Specifically, the  FIG. 4  embodiment allows an operator to remove individual substrates  14  without removing the entire hanging refugia from the containment vessel  22 . 
     In a further alternative embodiment, the device shown in  FIG. 4  may be deployed in a greenhouse or an outdoor environment without a lid/connection device  26  so that the containment vessel  22  is “open” and the refugia  10  is exposed to the outside environment. In this “open embodiment” of the system  20 , the substrates  14  may be treated with an attractant so that arthropods from outside the containment vessel  22  are drawn into the containment vessel  22  and implant eggs  12  on the hanging refugia  10  in the vessel  22 . This open embodiment enables an operator to effectively trap and/or sample (essentially) wild arthropods in a targeted area. 
     Although  FIG. 4  shows a vessel  22  with a single entry/exit port, in the open embodiment, the vessel  22  may be modified to include multiple openings so that the vessel  22  is more open to the outside environment. In further open embodiments, the vessel  22  may be even further modified so that the “vessel”  22  essentially only comprises a support means for the refugia  10  so that the refugia  10  receives maximum exposure to the environment in a targeted area. 
     In operation, in the preferred embodiment, lady beetles or other arthropods are deposited into a containment vessel  22  of the type shown in  FIGS. 2-4 . The arthropods ambulate onto the hanging refugia substrates  14  and deposit their eggs  12  (best shown in  FIG. 1 ) which eventually mature into larvae. Operators selectively open the containment vessel  22  and harvest individual substrates  14 , individual refugia  10  containing multiple substrates  14 , or the operator may harvest a collection module(s)  24  containing one or more refugia  10  (as best shown in  FIG. 2 ). 
     The refugia  10  and system  20  described herein provide important advantages over the prior art. The refugia  10  substrates  14  are specifically treated and designed to attract females to oviposit on the substrates  14 . The substrates  14  are also designed to facilitate the healthy development of arthropod larvae. The ability to remove the refugia  10  (and individual substrates  14 ) prevents the necessity to scrape the arthropod eggs off of containment housing surfaces (per the prior art). The method and apparatus described herein discourages cannibalization, and is faster, more efficient, and does not damage arthropod eggs as was common using prior art methods. 
     For the foregoing reasons, it is clear that the system described herein provides an innovative means of rearing arthropods and facilitating the harvest of arthropod eggs. The invention may be modified in multiple ways and applied in various technological applications. The current invention may be modified and customized as required by a specific operation or application, and the individual components may be modified and defined, as required, to achieve the desired result. Although lady beetles (specifically  Colemegilla maculata ) are generally discussed, the system may also be applicable to insects in the order coleoptera, hemiptera, diptera, embioptera, lepidoptera, hymenoptera, neuroptera, or any of the other minor orders of hexapoda, or a non-insect arthropod such as spiders, mites, scorpions, millipedes or others. 
     Although some of the materials of construction are not described, they may include a variety of compositions consistent with the function of the invention. Such variations are not to be regarded as a departure from the spirit and scope of the invention, and all such modifications as would be obvious to one skilled in the art are intended to be included within the scope of the following claims.