Studies on May beetles injurious to the turfgrass XI.

Flight phenomena of the cupreous charfer, Anomala cuprea HOPE

Abstract

Because the adult insects of the cupreous charfer do not ingest the stalks or leaves of sweet potatoes or peanuts which are the food of the larvae, it is difficult to increase their density if the adult insects do not move from their fields of birth to an area having food for imagoes.
The activity of the adult insects is closely related to the level of plant injury, so the authors observed the flight phenomena. The number of wing vibrations during flight were observed with a stroboscope by attaching a small piece of wire to the back of the adult insect chest, fixing the upper part of the wire, and recording the flight time.
1. The adult insects were released and after they flew for some time they dropped some dung. The longest flight by an individual was 36 minutes.
2. The authors observed that the forewings opened from the upper part of the body without touching the bended forelegs and midlegs. The vertical angle of movement of the forewings was 20° to 30°.
3. The hindwings were more active, with the right and left wings nearly touching. The hindwings vibrated at an inclination of about 150° to 160° to the back of the forewings.
4. The flight varied somewhat; however, number of vibrations recorded was between 68 to 82/sec. The value immediately before stopping was 68/sec.
5. Adult insects could be reared with the wire attached. The effect of attaching the wire was not observed.