Population Migration due to Interspecific Competition among Whiteflies (Homoptera: Aleyrodidae): A case Study from Southwestern Nigeria

Abstract

This chapter probe into interspecific competition between four different whitefly species (Aleurodicus dispersus, a cocois, Aleurocanthus woglumi and Bemisia tabaci) that are present in all the ecological zones of Southwestern Nigeria during wet and dry seasons. Climate change and extreme weather events have a major impact on crop production and agricultural pests. As generally adaptable organisms, insect pests respond differently to different causes of climate change. Whitefly populations are primarily regulated by environmental factors such as temperature, precipitation, and humidity in general. High temperature along with high humidity correlates positively with whitefly population build-up. Fields surveys of these pests were conducted from 8 sampling sites within the five states (Lagos, Oyo, Osun, Ekiti and Ondo states) of Southwestern Nigeria during 2016 and 2019 to investigate the effects of interspecific competition among whiteflies on plants in the region during wet and dry seasons. In the mangrove forest, rainforest, and derived savannah zones of the area, whiteflies were gathered on crops and decorative plants at sampling sites. Four species—Aleurocanthus woglumi, Aleurodicus dispersus, A cocois, and Bemisia tabaci—were found to compete with one another. Using the Paleontological Statistics Software Package (PAST), the species population of whiteflies was examined, and the distribution of the host surface among the species was examined using a non-parametric t-test.  The findings indicated that early rain season is when whitefly species in the area compete the most, which led to less infestation and quantity of the pest at the bottom of plant leaves while supporting a high number of the pest on upper leaf surfaces. . The competition is most during early rain season. A dispersus is most found on the upper surface of plant leaves in southwestern Nigeria. Moreover, presences of competitive species with type of season as abiotic factor play a fundamental role to adapt whitefly on upper side of host plant leaves.