DOI: 10.5061/dryad.dt1h407
title: Data from: Varying the spatial arrangement of synthetic herbivore-induced plant volatiles and companion plants to improve conservation biological control

description: 1.Conservation biological control aims to control pests by promoting wild
 populations of natural enemies. One challenge is to attract and retain
 efficient natural enemies in crop fields, which often are a suboptimal
 environment. Towards this goal, the attract-and-reward strategy relies on
 combining attractive synthetically produced herbivore-induced plant
 volatiles (HIPVs) with companion plants (non-crop plants which provide
 alternative resources to the targeted natural enemies). Although severely
 overlooked, the spatial arrangement of HIPV dispensers and rewards inside
 crop fields may strongly influence the foraging behaviour and persistence
 of natural enemies and thus the success of this pest management strategy.
 2.We tested the impact of two contrasting spatial arrangements of HIPV
 dispensers and rewards, alternatively inside and around a block of target
 apple trees, on the efficacy of the biological control of Aphis citricola
 populations by the common predatory ladybird Propylea japonica in apple
 orchards in northern China. We used synthetic methyl salicylate (MeSA) as
 an attractant and the companion plant Calendula officinalis as a reward.
 To better understand how the spatial arrangement of MeSA dispensers and
 companion plants affected the attraction and foraging behaviour of adult
 ladybirds, we conducted indoor experiments in a flight mill, an
 olfactometer and a wind-tunnel. 3.Blocks of target trees treated with MeSA
 dispensers inside and companion plants around provided the most efficient
 pest control in orchards, compared with the opposite spatial arrangement.
 4.The synthetic MeSA dispenser and the companion plant synergistically
 attracted ladybirds in the olfactometer and enhanced their flight activity
 in the flight mill. In the wind-tunnel, MeSA served as a spatial cue for
 ladybirds to find nearby prey, while companion plants were sought in the
 absence of prey. 5.Synthesis and applications. The present study will help
 further improvements of aphid control in apple orchards through a careful
 spatial arrangement of herbivore-induced plant volatiles dispensers
 (HIPVs) and rewards (companion plants) in optimized attract-and-reward
 strategies. Without such assessment, these strategies may be hazardous
 even with well-identified targeted natural enemies. Associated lab
 experiments highlight that HIPVs and companion plants interactively
 influence ladybird foraging pattern, and that their spatial arrangement
 can modulate the ability of such key predators to find their prey.
description: METADATA_files_index_
 legendsMETADATA file containing
 the index and description of all data files associated with the
 study.OR2013-2014Preliminary orchard experiment in 2013 and 2014. Refer to METADATA file for description.OR2015Preliminary orchard experiment in 2015. Refer to METADATA file for description.OR2016Main orchard experiment in 2016. Refer to METADATA file for description.Yield2016Yield data from the main orchard experiment in 2016. Refer to METADATA file for description.2018-12-07_fecundity_Pjap_marigoldFecundity data of Propylea japonica fed with Aphis citricola and Calendula officinalis flowers. Refer to METADATA file for description.2018-12-07_longevity_Pjap_marigoldLongevity data of Propylea japonica fed with Aphis citricola and Calendula officinalis flowers. Refer to METADATA file for description.Flight_millData from the flight mill experiment. Refer to METADATA file for description.OlfactometreData from the olfactometre experiment. Refer to METADATA file for description.Wind_tunnelData from the wind tunnel experiment. Refer to METADATA file for description.