Ingestion Efficiency and Protein Consumption by a Heteropteran Predator

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Abstract
The ingestion efficiency of the predaceous heteropteran Geocoris punctipes (Say) was studied with pea aphids, Acyrthosiphon pisum (Harris), used as prey. G. punctipes consumed aphids up to nearly 50% of their own body weights within a 6-h period. Aphid leftovers (orts) retained about the same proportion of protein (45.8% dry weight) after attack by G. punctipes as was true for intact aphids (42.8%). The amino acid profiles of intact aphids compared with orts differ somewhat, indicating that some proteins were inaccessible or undigestible to the predators. Ingestion efficiency averaged 64.6%, and the approximate digestibility of ingested material was >90%. This study demonstrates high efficiency in feeding due to pre-oral digestion and internal mechanical disruption of the prey's tissues by this predator's mouthparts.