Effect of Temperature on Minor Invertebrate Predator Reduviid Isyndus Heros (Fab.) (Hemiptera:Reduviidae)

Reduviid predators are the largest terrestrial bugs considered to be potential biocontrol agents and an integral part of integrated pest management (IPM). Despite the rich fauna of reduviids and their prey records, potential studies on reduviid are relatively meagre. Understanding the biotic and abiotic factors influencing the reduviid population is essential to exploit them as biocontol agents in agriculture. Hence the present study was aimed at determining the abundance of reduviid, Isyndus heros in an organic mango orchard and to determine the impact of abiotic factors on its occurrence. The peak population of reduviids was found during the initial flowering phase (January) and vegetative phase (September–December). Correlation matrix showed that there was a significant positive correlation of between the population of I. heros and relative humidity, and significant negative correlation between maximum and minimum temperatures. Further, the significant variables were regressed and the highest coefficient of determination was found in maximum temperature (R² = 0.62) with a single weather factor. However, multiple regression analysis revealed that the maximum and minimum temperatures could explain the variability up to 49%. This forms a baseline for the conservation and augmentation of reduviids that can be utilized as potential biocontrol agents in IPM programmes.