Chromogen-Ratio Method for Determining Digestibility of Plants by Grasshoppers

Authors

E. A. Heinrichs, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
K. P. Pruess, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow

Document Type

Article

Date of this Version

1966

Citation

Journal of Economic Entomology 59:3 (1966), pp. 550–552.

doi: 10.1093/jee/59.3.550

Comments

Copyright © 1966 Entomological Society of America; published by Oxford University Press. Used by permission.

Abstract

The concentration of plant pigments in excreta vs. food provided a measure of digestibility of most plants by grasshoppers. Digestibility values obtained with the chromogen-ratio method and consumption-excretion ratios were highly correlated (r = 0.789**). Greatly disparate results were obtained in 4 cases. The chromogen method, when applicable, gave better duplicability and eliminated many of the errors and much labor associated with consumption-excretion ratios.