The Preference of Frankliniella occidentalis to Different Horticultural Host

The host preference of Frankliniella occidentalis was explored by researching the effect of different hosts on the development and survival of the insects,as well as the colour choice and the free choice behaviors of insects to the hosts. The results showed that the preference level decreased in Cannaceae indica,Sophora xanthantha,Yucca gloriosa and Nerium indicum,according to the development period of F. occidentalis on the four hosts. F. occidentalis showed different preference according to the survival rate versus development period,the highest was on Y. gloriosa,followed by C. indica and S.xanthantha,and the lowest was on N. indicum. The preference level decreased in C. indica,S.xanthantha,Y. gloriosa and N. indicum,according to the colour choice of F. occidentalis to the hosts,while there was no significant difference between C. indica and S. xanthantha. Similar to the colour choice,the preference level decreased in S. xanthantha,C. indica,Y. gloriosa and N. indicum,according to the free choice of F. occidentalis to the hosts. From these results,we could conclude that F. occidentalis prefers C. indica and S. xanthantha to Y. gloriosa and N. indicum.