Susceptibility of brassicaceous plants to feeding by flea beetles, Phyllotreta spp. (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae).

Crucifer-feeding flea beetles, Phyllotreta spp., are chronic insect pests in Canadian prairie canola production. Multiple laboratory and field feeding bioassays were conducted to determine the susceptibility of a wide range of crucifer species, cultivars, and accessions to feeding by flea beetles with the goal of discovering sources of resistant germplasm. In 62 bioassays of 218 entries, no consistent decreased feeding by flea beetles was seen on any entries of Brassica carinata A. Braun, Brassica juncea (L.) Czern., Brassica napus L., or Brassica rapa L. There was reduced feeding on condiment mustard Sinapis alba L. lines but not on canola-quality lines with reduced amounts of glucosinolates, which were fed on at levels equal to B. napus. Analyses of glucosinolate content found decreased quantities of hydroxybenzyl and butyl glucosinolates in preferred canola-quality S. alba lines and increased levels of hydroxybutenyl glucosinolates compared with levels in condiment S. alba lines. Eruca sativa Mill. was an excellent flea beetle host; Camelina sativa (L.) Crantz lines experienced little feeding. Lines of Crambe abyssinica Hochst. ex R. E. Fries and Crambe hispanica L. had reduced feeding levels compared with Brassica entries, but Crambe glabrata DC did not. The results indicate possible sources of resistance to Phyllotreta flea beetles, while highlighting the complicated roles that glucosinolates may play in Phyllotreta host preference.

Differential metabolite profiles and salinity tolerance between two genetically related brown-seeded and yellow-seeded Brassica carinata lines.

Brassica carinata (Ethiopian mustard) has previously been identified as a potential crop species suitable for marginal land in the North American prairies due to its relatively high salt tolerance. Two genetically related B. carinata lines with brown-seeded (BS) and yellow-seeded (YS) phenotypes were assessed for their tolerance to sodium sulfate. Specifically, each line was greenhouse-grown under 0, 50 and 100mM of salt, and analyzed after four weeks and eight weeks of treatment. Generally, the height of the BS line was greater than the YS line under both salt treatments, indicating enhanced salt tolerance of the BS line. NMR-based metabolite profiling and PCA analyses indicated a more pronounced shift in key stem metabolites after four weeks of treatment with the YS line compared to the BS line. For example, tryptophan and formate levels increased in the YS line after four weeks of 100mM salt treatment, while proline and threonine levels varied uniquely compared to other metabolites of the lines. Together, the data indicate that the brown-seeded line has greater sodium tolerance than the yellow-seed line, provide clues to the biochemical underpinnings for the phenotypic variation, and highlight the utility of B. carinata as a biorefinery crop for saline land.

Feeding by flea beetles (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae; Phyllotreta spp.) is decreased on canola (Brassica napus) seedlings with increased trichome density.

Laboratory and field studies were undertaken to determine the effects of increased numbers of trichomes on seedling stems, petioles, and first true leaves of Brassica napus L., canola, on the feeding and behavior of the crucifer flea beetle Phyllotreta cruciferae (Goeze) (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae). Seedlings of 'Westar' canola with genes inserted from Arabidopsis thaliana L. for increased trichome production, called Hairyl, were tested against Westar seedlings in no-choice and choice laboratory tests, and against parental plants and other cultivars grown from seed with and without insecticide in field trials at Saskatoon and Lethbridge, Canada. Analyses ofprefeeding and feeding behavior in no-choice tests of first true leaves found that flea beetles interacted with their host while off Hairyl leaves more so than beetles presented with leaves of Westar. Beetles required twice as much time to reach satiation when feeding on leaves with increased pubescence than on Westar leaves. In laboratory choice tests, flea beetles fed more on cotyledons and second true leaves of Westar than on comparable tissues of the transgenic line. In field trials, variations in feeding patterns were seen over time on cotyledons of the line with elevated trichomes. However, all four young true leaves of Hairyl seedlings were fed upon less than were the parental lines. Feeding on Hairyl plants frequently occurred at levels equal to or less than on cultivars grown from insecticide-treated seed. This study highlights the first host plant resistance trait developed in canola, dense pubescence, with a strong potential to deter feeding by crucifer flea beetles.

Impact of decreasing ratios of insecticide-treated seed on flea beetle (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae, Phyllotreta spp.) feeding levels and canola seed yields.

Field studies were conducted at two locations on the Canadian prairies to investigate use of reduced ratios of insecticide-treated seed in controlling flea beetle (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae, Phyllotreta spp.) damage to canola (Brassica napus L. and Brassica rapa L.). Five treatments were evaluated: bare seed control, fungicide-only (0X), and three ratios of insecticide plus fungicide in proportions of all (1X), two thirds (0.67X), or one third (0.33X) of the seeds coated with insecticide. Decreasing treated seed ratios by one third had no consistent deleterious effects on flea beetle damage, seedling growth, plant density, seed yield, or net cash return. Flea beetle injury to seedlings in the 1X treatment was similar to that of seedlings in the 0.67X treatment, with only two exceptions, and it was almost always lower than that of seedlings without insecticide. The 0.33X treatment generally had flea beetle feeding levels between those of the two high and the two noninsecticide treatments. Plant stand and seedling growth rates with 1X and 0.67X treatments were similar and higher than with bare seed or fungicide-alone treatments. Seed yields were inversely proportional to flea beetle feeding levels. Under very heavy flea beetle feeding, seed yields and net cash returns were highest in 1X plots, but when flea beetle feeding pressure was less extreme and canola growing conditions were favorable, 0.67X seed yields and profits from them were comparable to those in 1X treatments. On an economic basis, currently there is no advantage to decreasing the level of insecticide treated canola seed, but other considerations may affect this assessment.