Interannual and seasonal migration patterns of wheat aphids across the Bohai Strait in eastern Asia based on ten years of monitoring data

The bird cherry-oat aphid (Rhopalosiphum padi) and the grain aphid (Sitobion miscanthi) are two destructive wheat pests that have caused severe economic losses in China's main wheat-producing regions. Although previous studies mainly focused on the population dynamics of wheat pests in wheat fields, little is known about the trans-sea migration of both wheat aphids in eastern China. Here, we conducted a 10-year monitoring from 2012 to 2021 for understanding the aerial migration patterns of both wheat aphids utilizing a suction trap on Beihuang Island (BH), a small island in the center of the Bohai Strait that serves as a seasonal insect migration pathway in eastern Asia. We also simulated the migration trajectories of these pests using the HYSPLIT model. Overall, a total of 6362 alatae S. miscanthi and 335 alatae R. padi were captured, and both wheat aphids exhibited regular comigration patterns across the sea during late April to late October each year.