Development of the black bean aphid (Aphis fabae Scop.) depending on various photoperiodic conditions

Among the sucking pests of sugar beet crops in Azerbaijan, black bean aphid (Aphis fabae Scop.), which occurs on beet seedlings from the moment of development of true leaves, causes significant damage. Based on this, the task of our study was to study the main life processes of beet aphids depending on photoperiodic conditions. The work was carried out in the Laboratory of Ecology and Physiology of Insects and the Center for Applied Zoology of Azerbaijan National Academy of Science in 2013-2019. The experiments were carried out in special photo thermostats with automatic control of temperature and light. The results obtained show that the light factor is of secondary importance for the duration of the larval, reproductive periods and for the entire development cycle compared to temperature. It should be noted that winged forms (about 50%) appear in aphid colonies during a 12-hour photoperiod at a temperature of 17 °C. Under the conditions of Azerbaijan, such photoperiod is observed at the end of March and at the beginning of October, when aphids migrate from primary to intermediate plants and vice versa in autumn (early October) from intermediate to primary. The length of the day established in the experiments, which causes the appearance of winged forms, is consistent with the phenology of this species.