Important pest species of the Spodoptera complex: Biology, thermal requirements and ecological zoning

Author(s):  
José Roberto Postali Parra ◽  
Aloisio Coelho ◽  
Johanna Bajonero Cuervo-Rugno ◽  
Adriano Gomes Garcia ◽  
Rafael de Andrade Moral ◽  
...  
2014 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 543-549
Author(s):  
Sándor Koczor ◽  
Andrej Cokl

AbstractThe European tarnished plant bug (Lygus rugulipennis Poppius) is among the most serious pests in the family Miridae, and therefore there is increasing interest in understanding the behaviour of this species. In the present study, laboratory recordings were taken using a laser vibrometer on adult males and females to ascertain whether acoustic signals are involved in intraspecific communication. Recordings were both carried out on plant and loudspeaker membrane substrates. Males and females emitted vibratory signals and the present results indicate that these signals are important during courtship. The basic signal characteristics measured were the dominant frequency, pulse duration, repetition time and number of pulses per group within the signal. Male and female signals did not differ in respect to any of these characteristics. Plant recorded signals were longer because of different mechanical properties of substrates. Additionally, the high frequency components were attenuated due to the low-pass filtering properties of plants. As this is the first study on vibratory communication of the European tarnished plant bug, we believe these findings may contribute considerably to the better understanding of the mating behavior of this important pest species.


Genes ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 9 (11) ◽  
pp. 554 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antonio Carapelli ◽  
Abir Soltani ◽  
Chiara Leo ◽  
Matteo Vitale ◽  
Moez Amri ◽  
...  

Leafminer insects of the genus Liriomyza are small flies whose larvae feed on the internal tissue of some of the most important crop plants for the human diet. Several of these pest species are highly uniform from the morphological point of view, meaning molecular data represents the only reliable taxonomic tool useful to define cryptic boundaries. In this study, both mitochondrial and nuclear molecular markers have been applied to investigate the population genetics of some Tunisian populations of the polyphagous species Liriomyza cicerina, one of the most important pest of chickpea cultivars in the whole Mediterranean region. Molecular data have been collected on larvae isolated from chickpea, faba bean, and lentil leaves, and used for population genetics, phylogenetics, and species delimitation analyses. Results point toward high differentiation levels between specimens collected on the three different legume crops, which, according to the species delimitation methods, are also sufficient to define incipient species differentiation and cryptic species occurrence, apparently tied up with host choice. Genetic data have also been applied for a phylogenetic comparison among Liriomyza species, further confirming their decisive role in the systematic studies of the genus.


1980 ◽  
Vol 112 (5) ◽  
pp. 527-528 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. P. McCaffrey ◽  
R. L. Horsburgh

The predaceous mirid Deraeocoris nebulosus (Uhler) is found on more than 50 species of ornamental trees and shrubs where it feeds on several important pest species (Wheeler et al. 1975). It is a common mite and aphid predator in commercial apple orchards in Virginia (Parrella et al. 1978). Wheeler et al. (1975) described the nymphal stages and biology, but made no mention of the egg or oviposition site. We describe the egg and oviposition site which we discovered while studying various predators of the European red mite, Panonychus ulmi (Koch), in Virginia apple orchards. Eggs and oviposition sites of other predaceous mirids associated with apple have been described (Kullenberg 1942; Collyer 1952, 1953; Sanford 1964; Horsburgh and Asquith 1968, 1970).


EUGENIA ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Odi R. Pinontoan ◽  
Maxi Lengkong ◽  
Henny V.G. Makal

ABSTRACT The research aimed to identify important pests which attack sweet potato in the field. Field and laboratory research were conducted. The field research was carried out in sweet potato cropping areas in Minahasa Regency, North Minahasa regency and  Tomohon. The laboratory research was conducted in plant pests and disease laboratory, Faculty of Agriculture Sam Ratulangi University Manado to idedntify the important pest species which were found on sweet potato plants. The duration of the study was four months starting from December 2010 until March 2011. Survey method was applied with purposive random sampling.  The research was used 4 period of plant growth namely 1 month, 2 months,3 months, and 4-5 months after planting. The result showed that there were five orders identified, attacking sweet potato since the age of 1-4 months in Minahasa regency, Tomohon and North Minahasa regency. The five orders were Orthoptera, Hemiptera, Homoptera, Lepidoptera, and Coleoptera. The damage on the leaves were caused by pests coreidae, Cicadelidae, Spodoptera sp (Noctuidae), Valanga sp (Acrididae), and Oxya sp. (Acrididae), whereas on the stem was Omphisa sp (Pyralidae). Damage on the tuber was caused by Gryllotalpa sp (Gryllotalpidae), Cylas formicarius (Curculionidae) and Oryctes sp (Dynastidae). Key words : Important Pest Plant Sweet Potatoes, Ipomea batatas L.


Insects ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (11) ◽  
pp. 1039
Author(s):  
Xiaomeng Liu ◽  
Mujie Qi ◽  
Haizhen Xu ◽  
Zhipeng Wu ◽  
Lizong Hu ◽  
...  

The Pyraloidea is one of the species-rich superfamilies of Lepidoptera and contains numerous economically important pest species that cause great loss in crop production. Here, we sequenced and annotated nine complete mitogenomes for Pyraloidea, and further performed various phylogenetic analyses, to improve our understanding of mitogenomic evolution and phylogeny of this superfamily. The nine mitogenomes were circular, double-stranded molecules, with the lengths ranging from 15,214 bp to 15,422 bp, which are comparable to other reported pyraloid mitogenomes in size. Gene content and arrangement were highly conserved and are typical of Lepidoptera. Based on the hitherto most extensive mitogenomic sampling, our various resulting trees showed generally congruent topologies among pyraloid subfamilies, which are almost in accordance with previous multilocus studies, indicating the suitability of mitogenomes in inferring high-level relationships of Pyraloidea. However, nodes linking subfamilies in the “non-PS clade” were not completely resolved in terms of unstable topologies or low supports, and future investigations are needed with increased taxon sampling and molecular data. Unexpectedly, Orybina Snellen, represented in a molecular phylogenetic investigation for the first time, was robustly placed as basal to the remaining Pyralidae taxa across our analyses, rather than nested in Pyralinae of Pyralidae as morphologically defined. This novel finding highlights the need to reevaluate Orybina monophyly and its phylogenetic position by incorporating additional molecular and morphological evidence.


2019 ◽  
Vol 45 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Steven Frank

Cities contain dozens of street tree species each with multiple arthropod pests. Developing and implementing integrated pest management (IPM) tactics, such as scouting protocols and thresholds, for all of them is untenable. A survey of university research and extension personnel and tree care professionals was conducted as a first step in identifying key pests of common street tree genera in the Southern United States. The survey allowed respondents to rate seven pest groups from 0 (not pests) to 3 (very important or damaging) for each of ten tree genera. The categories were sucking insects on bark, sucking insects on leaves, defoliators and leafminers, leaf and stem gall forming arthropods, trunk and twig borers and bark beetles, and mites. Respondents could also identify important pest species within categories. Some tree genera, like Quercus and Acer, have many important pests in multiple categories. Other genera like Liriodendron, Platanus, and Lagerstroemia have only one or two key pests. Bark sucking insects were the highest ranked pests of Acer spp. Defoliators, primarily caterpillars, were ranked highest on Quercus spp. followed closely by leaf and stem gallers, leaf suckers, and bark suckers. All pest groups were rated below ‘1’ on Zelkova spp. Identifying key pests on key tree genera could help researchers prioritize IPM development and help tree care professionals prioritize their training and IPM implementation. Recommendations for future surveys include having more respondents and tree taxa represented and identifying trees to species within large genera, such as Acer and Quercus.


2022 ◽  
Vol 67 (1) ◽  
pp. 221-238
Author(s):  
Tom W. Pope ◽  
Joe M. Roberts

Vine weevil, also known as black vine weevil, Otiorhynchus sulcatus, has been one of the most economically important pest species of global horticultural crops for the past five decades. This period has seen many changes in crop protection practices, including wide-scale adoption of biological controls such as entomopathogenic nematodes and fungi in place of conventional synthetic insecticides. Despite the experimental efficacy of these controls, growers continue to report significant crop losses associated with vine weevil infestation. We argue that simply switching from synthetic insecticides to biological controls, rather than using these controls as part of an integrated management program, is a key factor in the continued importance of this pest. An improved understanding of vine weevil biology and ecology is at the center of the development of truly integrated pest management programs. To this end, we identify opportunities created through recent vine weevil research and highlight key knowledge gaps in which further research may contribute to improved future management approaches.


2003 ◽  
Vol 93 (6) ◽  
pp. 561-567 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. Cabrera Walsh ◽  
M.M. Athanas ◽  
L.A.B. Salles ◽  
R.F.W. Schroder

AbstractThe genus Diabrotica includes a large number of pest species, including some of the most important crop pests of the Americas. The parasitoid Centistes gasseni Shaw is the first braconid to be described parasitizing Diabrotica in South America, and high natural infestations are reported. Field and experimental observations on the host range, distribution and biology of this parasitoid are described. Centistes gasseni was collected in southern Brazil, eastern Paraguay and northeastern Argentina, in a region comprising humid lowlands and highlands, and cool temperate to warm subtropical climates, with regular rainfall in excess of 1300 mm. Three Diabrotica species, D. limitata (Sahlberg), D. speciosa (Germar) and D. viridula (Fabricius) were found to host the parasitoid, with mean percent parasitism of 5.4, 2.0 and 1.0%, respectively. Diabrotica speciosa and D. viridula are the two most important pest Diabrotica species in South America. Laboratory experiments with field-collected beetles and parasitoid cocoons indicated that C. gasseni overwinters in adult host beetles, remaining dormant in its live host below developmental temperatures. A potential distribution of C. gasseni in North America is proposed based on its known climatic range and the distribution of the main pest species of adult overwintering North American Diabrotica.


Foods ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
pp. 1190
Author(s):  
Reza Sadeghi ◽  
Fereshteh Heidari ◽  
Asgar Ebadollahi ◽  
Fatemeh Azarikia ◽  
Arsalan Jamshidnia ◽  
...  

One of the new ways of warehouse pest control is the carbon dioxide treatment, which had no residues on the target products. In the present research, at first, CO2 gas was applied to control two important pest species infesting dried apricots. Dry apricots infested with adults of Tribolium castaneum (Herbst) or Rhyzopertha dominica (F.) were exposed to CO2 gas pressures correspond to 9.1, 16.7, 23.1, 28.6, and 33.4 mol% for 24 h. The results showed higher mortality rates with increasing the gas pressures in all the experiments. The minimum and maximum losses of the pests were determined at concentrations of 9.1 and 33.4 mol%, respectively. Evaluation of CO2 gas effects on the quality characteristics of dried apricots showed no impacts on the color, brittleness, hardness, sweetness, sourness, and general acceptance of products. CO2 gas treatments at the concentration of 33.4 mol% showed no significant influences on the chemical features of dried apricots, including pH, acidity, Brix, humidity percentage, reducing sugar, and total sugar. It was concluded that CO2 gas had the potential to control T. castaneum and R. dominica in warehouses of dried apricots, without any significant impacts on product qualities.


EDIS ◽  
1969 ◽  
Vol 2004 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Joe Funderburk ◽  
Julianne Stavisky

There are about 5,000 described species of thrips (insects in the Order Thysanoptera) (Moritz et al. 2001; Mound 1997). Most feed on fungi and live in leaf litter or on dead wood. The species that feed on higher plants occur mostly in the Family Thripidae. This family includes the important pest species. Some reproduce in flowers and feed on the cells of the flower tissues, on pollen grains, and on small developing fruits. Many of the flower-livingspecies are partly predatory. Other species primarily feed on leaves. Some species are predators on smallinsects. Some of the most common pest species feed on a wide range of plants and even prey on mites. This document is ENY682, one of a series of the Entomology and Nematology Department, Florida Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida. Date published: January 8, 2004. https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/in415 


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