Plum (Prunus spp.) aphid guild (Hemiptera: Sternorrhyncha, Aphididae) structure in Lithuania: any impact of an alien aphid species?

Abstract

A comparison of the plum aphid (Hemiptera: Aphididae) guild structure in Lithuania before (1975) and after (2012) the establishment of the invasive aphid species Brachycaudus divaricatae Shaposhnikov, 1956, was performed to investigate the impact of this invasive species on the native species complex. No substantial changes in the native plum aphid species composition, host plant associations and seasonal frequency dynamics were detected. The incorporation of B. divaricatae into the plum aphid guild in the eastern Baltic region of Europe was found to have increased the stability of the guild. Such an effect is explainable by the diversification of the guild structure (one more species incorporated in the food chain) and increased effectiveness of the use of resources (cherry plum was underexploited before the invasion of the new aphid species).