Color polymorphism, development, and reproductive diapause of the multicolored Asian ladybird Harmonia axyridis (Pallas) (Coleoptera, Coccinellidae) females

Abstract

Preimaginal development and maturation of females of two laboratory strains originated from two populations of the multicolored Asian ladybird Harmonia axyridis were investigated under laboratory conditions. Females of the autochthonous population from Irkutsk (Siberia) enter diapause under the short day conditions, whereas in females of the invasive population from Sochi (the Caucasus) photoperiodic induction of diapause is weak. The two populations also differ in the proportions of morphs: the population from Sochi is represented only by the morph succinea, whereas the population from Irkutsk is represented by the morphs succinea и axyridis with the predominance of the last one, which in our study was separated into two phenotypes, differed in the degree of melanization. Rearing of adults under the short day (12 h) conditions induced reproductive diapause in females of all the studied morphs and phenotypes of the Irkutsk population, whereas under the long day (18 h) conditions females of the morph succinea showed a slightly lower tendency to diapause. Evidently, the interpopulation differences in the responses regulating the seasonal cycle of the multicolored Asian ladybird are determined by genes that are not involved (or almost not involved) in the determination of the color polymorphism. The interpopulation differences in size and weight were quite substantial, whereas the differences between morphs and phenotypes were statistically significant in only some of our experiments. In combination with the literature data, these results suggest that the genes determining the color polymorphism in H. axyridis may have a pleiotropic effect on other traits including important eco-physiological parameters but this effect is relatively weak and manifests itself only against a particular genetic background and / or under particular environmental conditions.