Predatory insects

Bell, H. A., Down, R.E., Fitches, E.C., Edwards, J.P. and Gatehouse, A.M.R. (2003). Impact of genetically modified potato expressing plant derived insect resistance genes on the predatory bug, Podisus maculiventris (Heteroptera Pentatomidae). Biocontrol Science and Technology 13 729-741. 

The predators discussed up to this point search for prey by using their ability to perceive certain chemical clues. Some unusual predators have evolved the ability to attract their prey with scents that mimic the odor of a valuable resource (see reviews of chemical mimicry in refs. 9 and 39). Several groups of spiders lure male insect prey with scents that mimic the sex pheromone scents of females of the prey species (see reviews in refs. 9,13,40, and 41). To the best of our knowledge, these spiders are the only predators that mimic sex pheromones. However, the spiders share some similarities with the diverse orchids which mimic insect sex pheromones to lure pollinators (9, 42, 43) and with the predatory fireflies, which practice elaborate mimicry of visual sexual signals to lure their prey heterospecific male fireflies (44). 

Roy, I. and Hare, L. (1999). Relative importance of water and food as cadmium sources to the predatory insect Sialis velata (Magaloptera), Can. J. Fish. Aquat. Sci., 56, 1143-1149. 

The insects attracted by flowers, and especially their eggs, grubs, and caterpillars, will in turn become food for birds, predatory beetles, parasitic wasps, voles, and amphibians. Many creatures regarded as garden pests are actually a valuable food source for other creatures. 

A selection of bulbs planted in a good-sized pot in early fall can provide a succession of flowers from late winter through to late spring. Choose bulbs that flower at different times and that are planted at different depths. Plant at least two or three of each cultivar. Once the bulbs are over, they can be replaced with colorful summer bedding that will flower all summer long, for the benefit of many predatory insects. 

Predatory Mites Veiy small, 8 legs, not true insects Spider mites... 

The presence of high levels of alkaloids such as nicotine and cocaine in the guts of larval Insects may be highly adaptive for these Invertebrates in terms of potential predators. Molested larvae, such as those of noyesi, discharge enteric fluids from the mouth when disturbed (12), an act which can expose predators to high levels of alkaloids. Since these compounds are excellent repellents for a variety of Invertebrates, their value as deterrents for predatory animals may be considerable. 

Shimoda, T Takabayashi, J., Ashihara, W. and Takafuji, A. (1997). Response of predatory insect Scolothrips takahashii toward herbivore-induced plant volatiles under laboratory and field conditions. Journal of Chemical Ecology 23 2033-2048. 

Yardim, E.N. and Edwards, C.A. 2003. Effects of organic and synthetic fertilizer sources on pest and predatory insects associated with tomatoes. Phytoparasitica 31(4) 324-329. 

The soil-dwelling mites of the Cunaxidae are predatory mites living in the soil beneath remains, feeding on insects and their larvae associated with the remains. The Winterschmidtiidae and Acaridae may be found toward... 

Plants express a variety of typically very stable proteinase inhibitors in a range of tissues, from seeds to leaves to flowers, which are toxic to microbes and predatory insects. These peptide-based inhibitors come in a range of sizes, from the smallest gene-encoded cyclic peptide known to date, sunflower trypsin inhibitor 1 (SFTI-1),1/92 a 14-residue cyclic peptide with a single disulphide bond, to squash inhibitors93 that are approximately 30 residues in size and feature a cystine-knot motif, to 50-residue proteinase inhibitors found in the stigmas of the ornamental... 

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