PHENOLOGY AND POPULATION DYNAMICS OF SOME SCYMNUS KUGELANN SPECIES (COLEOPTERA COCCINELLIDAE) IN CITRUS ORCHARDS WITH DIFFERENT MANAGEMENT IN SICILY (ITALY)

Surveys on Scymninae (Coleoptera, Coccinellidae) in two citrus orchards in Sicily (Italy) with different management (organic vs integrated management) were carried out for three years (2017-2020). The phenology and population dynamics of species belonging to the genus Scymnus Kugelann are reported. The following eight species were studied: Scymnus apetzi Mulsant, 1846, Scymnus interruptus (Goeze, 1777), Scymnus laetificus Weise, 1879, Scymnus marginalis Rossi, 1794, Scymnus nubilus (Mulsant, 1850), Scymnus rubromaculatus (Goeze, 1777), and Scymnus subvillosus (Goeze, 1777) all aphidophagous, and Scymnus marinus Mulsant, 1850 coccidophagous. Overall, 2,477 specimens of Scymnus were collected over three years in the two sites. Of these, 63.9% were aphidophagous, while 36.1% were coccidophagous. A total of 920 specimens (7 species) were found in the organic orchard, dominated by aphidophagous species (99.1%,), with only 0.8% of the coccidophagous S. marinus. A different situation occurred at the integrated orchard, where 1,557 specimens were collected. Of them, 43% belonged to the aphidophagous species, and 56.9% to S. marinus.