Document Type : Research Paper
Authors
1 MSc Graduate, Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Razi University, Kermanshah, Iran
2 2. Associate Professor, Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Razi University, Kermanshah, Iran. *Corresponding
Abstract
Introduction: In many insect species, cannibalism has been reported as a natural behavior, and in this behavior, complete insects and larvae feed on eggs and pupae in the absence of food. Materials and methods: In the present study, seven diet groups, each of which contains a mixture of wheat bran with barley, corn, and beetle, were provided as beetle breeding environments. The effect of the above diets groups in the presence of carrot (saturation period) and the absence of fruit (hungry period) on the selective cannibalism behavior of whole insects and larvae from eggs and yellow flour beetle was investigated. Results and discussion: The results of the selective behavior analysis of beetle showed that they prefer eggs first and then pupae, which is probably due to their searching behavior in the bed of the breeding environment containing eggs, as well as the eggs' inability to avoid hunting. In the selective behavior of the larvae, it was observed that they attack the pupae first rather than the complete insects, which is probably due to the inability of the pupae to avoid prey and also having a soft and moist body. Also, the results of this research showed that the nutrition factor and diet quality have a significant effect on cannibalism. In the study of the effect of periods of starvation (12, 24, 36, 48) on the rate of cannibalism of the whole insect, it was observed that insects with more than 12 hours of starvation show the highest rate of cannibalism.
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