SEASONAL ABUNDANCE OF THE PEA APHID, ACYRTHOSIPHON PISUM (HOMOPTERA: APHIDIDAE), IN MANITOBA FIELD PEAS

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Abstract
Pea aphids, Acyrthosiphon pisum (Harris), were sampled from 1980 to 1983 in field peas, Pisum sativum (L.), in Manitoba. Sweep and foliage samples were taken in commercial fields and plots. Aphids were found in late May or early June soon after the crop emerged, but populations were low throughout June. Populations increased in July, when the crop was flowering and producing pods, and peaked in the latter half of July or early August in 3 of the 4 years, when pods were maturing. Populations decreased rapidly after the peak, as the plants senesced. In 1980, a drought year, aphid densities were low and the populations peaked in the middle of August. From 1981 to 1983, densities exceeded the economic threshold in all commercial fields and all but one of the plots that were sampled.