scholarly journals Entomopathogenic Nematodes for the Management of Plum Curculio in Highbush Blueberry

Biology ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 45
Author(s):  
Ana Luiza Sousa ◽  
Cesar Rodriguez-Saona ◽  
Robert Holdcraft ◽  
Vera Kyryczenko-Roth ◽  
Albrecht M. Koppenhöfer
Keyword(s):  
Entomopathogenic Nematodes ◽  
Entomopathogenic Nematode ◽  
Field Studies ◽  
The United States ◽  
Highbush Blueberry ◽  
Conotrachelus Nenuphar ◽  
Plum Curculio ◽  
Pome Fruits ◽  
Field Efficacy ◽  
Highbush Blueberries

Conotrachelus nenuphar Herbst (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) is a key pest of stone and pome fruits in the United States. Application of certain entomopathogenic nematode (EPN) species has shown efficacy in some crops when targeting the larval stage of C. nenuphar in soil. To date, however, no EPNs have been tested for the control of this pest in highbush blueberries. In 2020, laboratory and field studies were conducted to: (1) determine the persistence of Steinernema riobrave, S. carpocapsae, S. feltiae, and Heterorhabditis bacteriophora in acidic blueberry soil; (2) compare the virulence of these EPNs to C. nenuphar larvae and pupae; and (3) compare the efficacy of these EPN species to control this pest in blueberry fields. The greatest persistence in blueberry soil was exhibited by S. riobrave followed by S. carpocapsae. Superior virulence was observed in S. riobrave against C. nenuphar larvae and pupae. Promising levels of virulence were also observed in S. carpocapsae and S. feltiae against the larvae, but S. scarabaei had low virulence. In the field, S. riobrave provided significantly higher levels of C. nenuphar suppression (90%) than the other EPNs. The field efficacy of S. riobrave against C. nenuphar at low and high rates was confirmed in 2021. Steinernema riobrave has the potential to become an important component in the management of C. nenuphar in highbush blueberry.

scholarly journals A Review of the Biology, Ecology, and Management of Plum Curculio (Coleoptera: Curculionidae)

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Timothy P Lampasona ◽  
Cesar Rodriguez-Saona ◽  
Tracy C Leskey ◽  
Anne L Nielsen
Keyword(s):  
Management Practices ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
The United States ◽  
Conotrachelus Nenuphar ◽  
Future Directions ◽  
Geographic Ranges ◽  
Plum Curculio ◽  
Fruit Abortion ◽  
Chemical Inputs ◽  
And Control

Abstract The plum curculio, Conotrachelus nenuphar Herbst (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), is an insect native to the Americas that is a serious pest of stone and pome fruits in the United States and Canada. Failure to effectively manage this insect may result in up to 85% damaged fruit at harvest, as well as early season fruit abortion. Conotrachelus nenuphar is oligophagous, feeding and ovipositing on many Rosaceous plants, including apple, peach, plum, cherry, quince, and pear. Additionally, C. nenuphar in limited geographic ranges utilizes alternate hosts such as highbush blueberry (Ericaceae) and Muscadine grape (Vitaceae). Despite its long history as a pest, integrated pest management (IPM) lags behind similarly damaging native fruit pests. Although significant progress has been made on the identification of attractive lures for monitoring C. nenuphar adults, development of behaviorally based management strategies, and biological control with entomopathogenic nematodes, growers continue to rely heavily on top-down chemical inputs to manage this pest. Most of the research to date comes from studies done in apples where alternative management practices for C. nenuphar have, to some extent, been adopted; however, less IPM-based information is available for other susceptible crops. In this review, we summarize the history, biology, ecology, behavior, and control of C. nenuphar and future directions for IPM research.

Using entomopathogenic nematodes for biological control of plum curculio, Conotrachelus nenuphar: Effects of irrigation and species in apple orchards

2013 ◽  
Vol 67 (2) ◽  
pp. 123-129 ◽  
Author(s):  
David I. Shapiro-Ilan ◽  
Starker E. Wright ◽  
Arthur F. Tuttle ◽  
Daniel R. Cooley ◽  
Tracy C. Leskey
Keyword(s):  
Biological Control ◽  
Entomopathogenic Nematodes ◽  
Apple Orchards ◽  
Conotrachelus Nenuphar ◽  
Plum Curculio

Host-tree-related differences in trap captures and electroantennogram activity of Conotrachelus nenuphar (Coleoptera: Curculionidae)

2010 ◽  
Vol 142 (3) ◽  
pp. 284-293 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tracy C. Leskey ◽  
Torri J. Hancock ◽  
Starker E. Wright
Keyword(s):  
North America ◽  
Malus Domestica ◽  
The Other ◽  
Stone Fruit ◽  
Eastern North America ◽  
Conotrachelus Nenuphar ◽  
Plum Curculio ◽  
Active Season ◽  
Prunus Salicina ◽  
Pome Fruits

AbstractThe plum curculio, Conotrachelus nenuphar (Herbst), is a serious pest of stone and pome fruits (Rosaceae) in eastern North America. We recorded captures of adult plum curculios in the field and measured electroantennogram (EAG) activity in the laboratory associated with cultivars of four hosts, ‘Formosa’ Japanese plum (Prunus salicina Lindl.), ‘Stanley’ European plum (P. domestica L.), ‘Empire’ apple (Malus domestica Borkh.), and ‘Loring’ peach (P. persica (L.) Batsch) (Rosaceae) to determine whether hosts that may be attractive to the plum curculio under field conditions also elicit positive EAG responses. Trap captures of adults on ‘Formosa’ plum were significantly greater than on any other host, and corresponding headspace extracts also produced strong EAG responses throughout the active season. ‘Stanley’ plum and ‘Loring’ peach, the other stone-fruit hosts included in the study, elicited strong EAG responses throughout the season, although trap captures associated with these hosts were generally not as high as for ‘Formosa’ plum. Throughout the season, trap captures of adults were significantly lower for ‘Empire’ apple than for ‘Formosa’ plum, and EAG responses were much lower than for all stone-fruit hosts. Our results indicate that volatiles from ‘Formosa’ plum likely contain uniquecompounds or are comprised of ratios of stimulating compounds that make it much more attractive to plum curculio in the field.

Observations sur les Dégâts Causés par le Charançon de la Prune, Conotrachelus nenuphar (Hbst.), sur les Pommes dans le Sud-Ouest du Québec

1957 ◽  
Vol 89 (11) ◽  
pp. 496-502 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. O. Paradis
Keyword(s):  
Growing Season ◽  
Field Studies ◽  
Egg Laying ◽  
Conotrachelus Nenuphar ◽  
Plum Curculio

Field studies in southwestern Quebec showed that feeding scars of the plum curculio Conotrachelus nenuphar (Hbst.), were made by overwintered and summer adults and occurred throughout the growing season. Egg-laying scars were made by overwintered adults only and occurred from the time of apple set to early August. The latter category included deep entries, which were made by the developing larvae in the fruit. In the McIntosh and Lawfam varieties feeding scars were found in 37.4 and 35.0 per cent respectively, averaging 36 per cent for the combined varieties, and egg-laying scars in 62.6 and 65.0 per cent, averaging 63.8 The extent of the two types of damage in the field appeared to be the reverse of those observed in the insectary, where feeding scars for the combined varieties averaged 63.2 per cent and egg-laying scars 36.8 per cent. In the insectary, 41.1 and 22.1 per cent of the feeding scars were respectively contributed by overwintered and summer adults. It was not possible to estimate these fractions in the field.

scholarly journals Toward the Integration of an Attract-and-Kill Approach with Entomopathogenic Nematodes to Control Multiple Life Stages of Plum Curculio (Coleoptera: Curculionidae)

Insects ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 375 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jaime C. Piñero ◽  
David Shapiro-Ilan ◽  
Daniel R. Cooley ◽  
Arthur F. Tuttle ◽  
Alan Eaton ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
New England ◽  
Entomopathogenic Nematodes ◽  
Life Stages ◽  
Water Control ◽  
Conotrachelus Nenuphar ◽  
Plum Curculio ◽  
Tree Canopies ◽  
One Year ◽  
Tree Approach ◽  
Insecticide Sprays

Efforts to reduce insecticide inputs against plum curculio, Conotrachelus nenuphar, a key pest of apples in eastern North America, include perimeter-row insecticide sprays applied after the whole-orchard petal fall spray to manage dispersing adults and, more recently, insecticide sprays confined to odor-baited trap trees. Entomopathogenic nematodes (EPNs) are virulent to ground-dwelling stages of C. nenuphar, and may be applied to the ground underneath trap-tree canopies. Here, we (1) compared the efficacy of the odor-baited trap tree approach with grower-prescribed (=grower standard) sprays to manage C. nenuphar populations over a six-year period in seven commercial apple orchards in New England; and (2) assessed the performance of the EPN Steinernema riobrave at suppressing ground-dwelling stages of C. nenuphar. In addition, the performance of S. riobrave was compared against that of S. carpocapsae and S. feltiae in one year. Across the six years, percent fruit injury on trap tree plots averaged 11.3% on odor-baited trap trees and 1.4% on unbaited trees in grower standard plots, highlighting the ability of trap trees to aggregate C. nenuphar activity and subsequent injury. Mean percentage injury on fruit sampled from interior trees, the strongest measure of treatment performance, in trap tree plots did not differ significantly from that recorded on interior trees in grower standard spray plots (0.95 vs. 0.68%, respectively). Steinernema riobrave consistently reduced C. nenuphar populations as indicated by the significantly lower number of adult C. nenuphar that emerged from the soil, when compared to water control. Steinernema carpocapsae and S. riobrave performed similarly well, and both EPN species outperformed S. feltiae. Our combined findings indicate that an IPM approach that targets multiple life stages of C. nenuphar has the potential to manage this pest more sustainably in a reduced-spray environment.

scholarly journals Behavioral Response of Plum Curculio,Conotrachelus nenuphar, to Synthetic Fruit Volatile Lures and the Male-Produced Aggregation Pheromone

2015 ◽  
Vol 2015 ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Clement Akotsen-Mensah ◽  
Henry Y. Fadamiro
Keyword(s):  
Aggregation Pheromone ◽  
Behavioral Response ◽  
Inhibitory Effect ◽  
Conotrachelus Nenuphar ◽  
Release Rates ◽  
Mating Status ◽  
Plum Curculio ◽  
Physiological Conditions ◽  
Pome Fruits ◽  
Neutral Effect

Plum curculio,Conotrachelus nenupharHerbst (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), is a key pest of stone and pome fruits in North America. The behavioral response of adults of different physiological states (sex, age, diet, and mating status) to three commercially available synthetic lures, benzaldehyde (BZ) and plum essence (PE), the male-produced aggregation pheromone, grandisoic acid (GA), or their combinations, was studied in the laboratory. Four choice olfactometer bioassays demonstrated significant attraction of both sexes to PE lure. Both BZ and GA lures were not attractive to plum curculio when tested as commercially formulated. PE had higher release rate (1.51 mg/hr) than BZ (0.36 mg/hr) and GA (ca. 0.04 mg/hr), suggesting that the higher attractiveness of PE may be due to its relatively higher release rates. Tests with combined lures showed a neutral effect of combining GA with PE and an inhibitory effect of combining BZ with PE. The physiological conditions of the weevils had no significant effect on their response to the lures. Olfactometer tests with pure 1,2,4-trichlorobenzene (TCB) confirmed that this compound was inhibitory to plum curculio. These results are discussed in relation to the contrasting field reports which implicated BZ + GA as an effective attractant for plum curculio.

Non-crop habitats serve as a potential source of spotted-wing drosophila (Diptera: Drosophilidae) to adjacent cultivated highbush blueberries (Ericaceae)

2020 ◽  
Vol 152 (4) ◽  
pp. 474-489 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pablo Urbaneja-Bernat ◽  
Dean Polk ◽  
Fernando Sanchez-Pedraza ◽  
Betty Benrey ◽  
Jordano Salamanca ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Field Studies ◽  
Vaccinium Corymbosum ◽  
Spotted Wing Drosophila ◽  
Adult Survival ◽  
Highbush Blueberry ◽  
Drosophila Suzukii ◽  
Post Harvest ◽  
Wild Fruits ◽  
Wild Blueberries ◽  
Highbush Blueberries

AbstractNative to southeast Asia, the spotted-wing drosophila (Drosophila suzukii (Matsumura); Diptera: Drosophilidae) has become a major pest of small fruits in the Americas and Europe. Field studies were conducted over a two-year period (2015–2016) in cultivated highbush blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum Linnaeus; Ericaceae) fields and adjacent non-crop habitats containing wild blueberries in New Jersey (United States of America). We tracked seasonal changes in D. suzukii adult abundance and fruit infestation throughout the ripening period (June–August). In both years, D. suzukii adult counts post-harvest were generally higher in traps located in non-crop habitats compared with those located in highbush blueberry fields. Wild and cultivated fruits synchronised in maturation, and the numbers of eggs laid and of emerged adults in both fruit types were comparable for most of the season, although sometimes these numbers were higher in wild fruits post-harvest. Overall, immature success (measured as the per cent egg-to-adult survival) was also mostly higher in wild than in cultivated fruits. Altogether, these studies document that non-crop habitats, and wild hosts therein, are used by D. suzukii during fruit ripening and may serve as potential sources of infestation to nearby highbush blueberry fields. Hence, methods that reduce D. suzukii populations in non-crop habitats may help manage this pest in neighbouring highbush blueberries.

scholarly journals Exploring an Odor-Baited “Trap Bush” Approach to Aggregate Plum Curculio (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) Injury in Blueberries

Insects ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 113 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cesar Rodriguez-Saona ◽  
Anne Nielsen ◽  
David Shapiro-Ilan ◽  
Sunil Tewari ◽  
Vera Kyryczenko-Roth ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
New Jersey ◽  
Foraging Behavior ◽  
Spillover Effect ◽  
Highbush Blueberry ◽  
Conotrachelus Nenuphar ◽  
Plum Curculio ◽  
And Control

This 2-year study (2013–2014) assessed the efficacy of an odor-baited “trap bush” approach to aggregate plum curculio, Conotrachelus nenuphar, adult injury, i.e., number of oviposition-scared fruit, in four commercial highbush blueberry farms in New Jersey (USA). In each farm, we compared fruit injury in bushes baited with grandisoic acid and benzaldehyde along the perimeter of trap-bush plots versus unbaited bushes in control plots. We also measured the amount of fruit injury in neighboring bushes (i.e., spillover effect) and in the plots’ interior. In both years, the amount of fruit injury by C. nenuphar adults was greater on and near odor-baited bushes in trap-bush plots compared with those on and near unbaited bushes in control plots, indicative of aggregation. Injury in unbaited bushes neighboring trap bushes was often greater than unbaited bushes in control plots, providing some evidence for a spillover effect. However, no difference in fruit injury was found between interior trap-bush and control plots. Therefore, odor-baited trap bushes can be used in blueberries to manipulate C. nenuphar foraging behavior, i.e., aggregate adults, without compromising injury in field interiors. Under this approach, insecticides could then be targeted at only a few (perimeter-row) bushes within fields rather than entire fields.

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