Viability of old house borer (Hylotrupes bajulus) larvae exposed to a constant magnetic field of 98 mT under laboratory conditions

Abstract

The purpose of our experiment was to establish how exposure to a constant magnetic field of 98 mT affects behavior in terms of viability and larval mass of the old house borer (Hylotrupes bajulus L.). It is demonstrated that larvae exposed to this magnetic field show statistically significant higher viability, as well as a tendency of mass increase in comparison with the control group. These results can be attributed to the modulatory effect of the employed external magnetic field on metabolism and neurohumoral regulation in the insects.

Cilj našeg eksperimenta je bio da se utvrdi kako izlaganje konstantnom magnetnom polju od 98 mT utiče na ponašanje u smislu preživljavanja i mase larvi kućne strižibube (Hylotrupes bajulus L.). Pokazano je da larve koje su se nalazile u magnetnom polju pomenutih karakteristika imaju statistički značajno veće preživljavanje, kao i tendenciju povećanja mase u odnosu na kontrolnu grupu jedinki. Ovi rezultati se mogu pripisati modulatornom uticaju spoljašnjeg magnetnog polja na metabolizam i neurohumoralnu regulaciju insekata.