An Improved Method for Feeding Aphids on Artificial Diets1

Abstract

Recent publications by the authors described a simple method for feeding the green peach aphid, Mysus persicae (Sulzer), on various fluid diets via a membrane of stretched Parafilm “M”® (Mittler and Dadd 1962, 1963a). Although the method proved satisfactory when relatively few cages were needed at any one time (Bragdon and Mittler 1963; Mittler and Dadd 1963b; Strong 1963), the initiation of routine experiments on a larger scale called for a number of improvements to be made in the system.