Bean Leaf Beetle:1 Some Seasonal Anatomical Changes and Dormancy2

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Abstract
Four behaviorally distinct groups were examined: (1) on-plant (soybean) individuals; (2) in-field, in flight individuals; (3) in-woods, in flight individuals; and (4) in-litter (overwintering) individuals. Since on-plant individuals' main activities consist of feeding, mating, and laying eggs, the group was characterized by developed ovaries, relatively high percentage of mated females, and lower abundance of fat bodies during egg maturation. Individuals in flight in the fields took the characteristics of on-plant individuals during mid-summer and of overwintering beetles during spring and fall. Ovaries were generally undeveloped in individuals taken from forest-floor litter and from traps in wooded areas. There was no gradual development of ovaries nor depletion of fat bodies during dormancy. Dormant females were characteristically unmated, with small and immature ovaries, and possessed an increased fat content. Dormant males carried live sperm throughout the year, showed no change in testes size, and had an increased fat content. These observations fit the criteria of reproductive diapause.

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