scholarly journals Survey for Adventive Populations of the Samurai Wasp, Trissolcus japonicus (Hymenoptera: Scelionidae) in Pennsylvania at Commercial Fruit Orchards and the Surrounding Forest

Insects ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 258
Author(s):  
Hillary M. Peterson ◽  
Elijah Talamas ◽  
Grzegorz Krawczyk

The samurai wasp, Trissolcus japonicus (Ashmead) (Hymenoptera: Scelionidae), is an egg parasitoid associated with the brown marmorated stink bug, Halyomorpha halys (Stål) (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae). Trissolcus japonicus is a candidate for classical biological control of H. halys populations. Since 2014, adventive populations of T. japonicus have been detected in 14 US states, in the Canadian provinces of British Columbia and Ontario, and in two European countries, Switzerland and Italy. Establishing baseline information about populations of T. japonicus is important, as this species is not host specific to H. halys and the potential ecological effects of the accidental introductions are not fully known. In this study, yellow sticky cards were deployed at commercial fruit orchards in nine counties in Pennsylvania separated by more than 400 km. Trissolcus japonicus was detected on cards in eight counties, and in two habitats, in the orchard and at the forest border. Other native species of Scelionidae known to attack the eggs of H. halys were also identified, including Trissolcus euschisti (Ashmead), Trissolcus brochymenae (Ashmead), and Telenomus podisi Ashmead (Hymenoptera: Scelionidae). These results are important baseline ecological knowledge for both T. japonicus, which appears to be established in orchards throughout Pennsylvania, and other native Scelionidae.

2019 ◽  
Vol 49 (1) ◽  
pp. 15-20 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sean M Boyle ◽  
Donald C Weber ◽  
Judith Hough-Goldstein ◽  
Kim A Hoelmer

Abstract The brown marmorated stink bug, Halyomorpha halys (Stål), is a highly polyphagous species native to Asia that has become a serious invasive agricultural and nuisance pest across North America and Europe. Classical biological control host range evaluations have revealed egg parasitoid Trissolcus japonicus (Ashmead) to be the primary candidate biocontrol agent for field release against H. halys. However, these evaluations only provide us with the physiological host range of T. japonicus. Other Trissolcus species have demonstrated that contact kairomones from different host species elicit varied responses in the parasitoids’ host foraging behaviors. To assess T. japonicus response to host kairomones, mated naive females were exposed to leaf surfaces contaminated with adult kairomones from its preferred host, H. halys, or from a native nontarget host, Podisus maculiventris (Say) (Heteroptera: Pentatomidae). Red maple, apple, and soybean were used as plant substrate treatments. The wasp’s residence time on the leaf surface, linear walking velocity, and angular walking velocity were observed and measured using Noldus EthoVision XT tracking software. Within each leaf treatment, T. japonicus displayed stronger behavioral responses on leaves contaminated with contact kairomones from H. halys. The parasitoid resided on H. halys contaminated leaves for approximately twice as a long as it did on P. maculiventris contaminated leaves. Further, both species’ kairomones elicited significant decreases in parasitoid walking velocity on all tested substrate types. Overall, our study suggests that kairomone-based behavioral studies can be used to further evaluate the host specificity of T. japonicus and can be an invaluable supplement to classical biocontrol host range testing regimes.


2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Joshua M Milnes ◽  
Elizabeth H Beers

Abstract Trissolcus japonicus (Ashmead), an Asian parasitoid of Halyomorpha halys (Stål) (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae), was first detected in North America in 2014. Although testing in quarantine facilities as a candidate for classical biological control is ongoing, adventive populations have appeared in multiple sites in the United States, Canada, and Europe. Extensive laboratory testing of T. japonicus against other North American pentatomids and H. halys has revealed a higher rate of parasitism of H. halys, but not complete host specificity. However, laboratory tests are necessarily artificial, in which many host finding and acceptance cues may be circumvented. We offered sentinel egg masses of three native pentatomid (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) pest species (Chinavia hilaris (Say), Euschistus conspersus Uhler, and Chlorochroa ligata (Say)) in a field paired-host assay in an area with a well-established adventive population of T. japonicus near Vancouver, WA. Overall, 67% of the H. halys egg masses were parasitized by T. japonicus during the 2-yr study. Despite the ‘worst case’ scenario for a field test (close proximity of the paired egg masses), the rate of parasitism (% eggs producing adult wasps) on all three native species was significantly less (0.4–8%) than that on H. halys eggs (77%). The levels of successful parasitism of T. japonicus of the three species are C. hilaris > E. conspersus > C. ligata. The potential impact of T. japonicus on these pentatomids is probably minimal.


Insects ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (9) ◽  
pp. 840
Author(s):  
Barbara Bittau ◽  
Maria Luisa Dindo ◽  
Giovanni Burgio ◽  
Giuseppino Sabbatini-Peverieri ◽  
Kim Alan Hoelmer ◽  
...  

Halyomorpha halys (Stål) (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae), a pest of Asian origin, has been causing severe damage to Italian agriculture. The application of classical biological control by the release of Trissolcus japonicus (Ashmead) (Hymenoptera: Scelionidae), an exotic egg parasitoid, appears to be one promising solution. In Italy, releases of T. japonicus in the field were authorized in 2020. In this study, some parameters that could influence the rearing of T. japonicus in insectaries were investigated. A significantly higher production of progeny was observed on host eggs stored at 6 °C (86.5%) compared to −24 °C (48.8%) for up to two months prior to exposure to parasitism. There were no significant differences in progeny production from single females in a vial provided with only one egg mass (83.2%) or 10 females inside a cage with 6 egg masses (83.9%). The exposure of parasitoids to refrigerated (6 °C) egg masses of H. halys for 72 h led to a significantly higher production of progeny (62.1%) compared to shorter exposures for 48 (44.0%) or 24 h (37.1%). A decline in production of progeny by the same female was detected between the first (62.1%) and the second parasitization (41.3%). Adult parasitoids stored at 16 °C for up to 90 days had an 87.1% survival rate, but a significant decrease in progeny production was detected. These parameters could be adjusted when rearing T. japonicus for specific aims such as the production of individuals for field release or colony maintenance.


2017 ◽  
Vol 90 (4) ◽  
pp. 1097-1105 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yong-Zhi Zhong ◽  
Jin-Ping Zhang ◽  
Li-Li Ren ◽  
Rui Tang ◽  
Hai-Xia Zhan ◽  
...  

Author(s):  
Warren H. L. Wong ◽  
Matt A. Walz ◽  
Angela B. Oscienny ◽  
Jade L. Sherwood ◽  
Paul K. Abram

AbstractAn effective stockpiling method for egg masses of the invasive brown marmorated stink bug (Halyomorpha halys [Stål]; Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) would be useful for rearing and field studies of its egg parasitoid Trissolcus japonicus (Ashmead) (Hymenoptera: Scelionidae). The current method of stockpiling H. halys egg masses at sub-zero temperatures has lethal and sublethal fitness consequences for T. japonicus. We show that parasitoid emergence from egg masses refrigerated at 8°C for up to two months before parasitism is higher than from frozen egg masses and usually has minimal or no sublethal fitness effects (sex ratio, development time, activity, fecundity, longevity, and weight) on emerging T. japonicus. Only after two months of host egg refrigeration did the emergence of T. japonicus begin to decrease significantly (by 9.6% relative to untreated viable egg masses), whereas egg masses previously frozen at -80°C had a 58.8% reduction in parasitoid emergence after 14 days of storage. Refrigerated egg masses that were subsequently exposed to average field temperatures (warm: 22.9°C; cool: 13.2°C) were still suitable for T. japonicus parasitism after 7 days, while viable egg masses exposed to warm temperatures for 7 days before parasitism had 24.1% lower parasitoid emergence. Our results demonstrate that refrigeration at 8°C, while resulting in complete mortality of H. halys embryos after 10 days, are more suitable for T. japonicus parasitism than those stored at sub-zero temperatures. The quantity and quality of H. halys eggs that can be stockpiled with this method could facilitate T. japonicus laboratory colony maintenance, field monitoring, and releases.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lucrezia Giovannini ◽  
Giuseppino Sabbatini-Peverieri ◽  
Leonardo Marianelli ◽  
Gabriele Rondoni ◽  
Eric Conti ◽  
...  

Abstract The invasive stink bug Halyomorpha halys is a severe agricultural pest of worldwide importance, and chemical insecticides are largely sprayed for the control of its populations. Negative impacts and several failures in chemical pest management led to consider classical biological control as one of the most promising methods in a long-term perspective. The Asian egg parasitoid Trissolcus japonicus is the main candidate biocontrol agent of H. halys, but more recently a second Asian egg parasitoid, Trissolcus mitsukurii, is getting attention after adventive populations were found on H. halys egg masses in Europe. Before recommending the use of T. mitsukurii for biological control of H. halys, a risk analysis is necessary and therefore here we present the first study on the fundamental physiological host range of this parasitoid in Europe. Tests conducted with T. mitsukurii on different hemipterans, using three different experimental designs, revealed a broad physiological host range, comparable with the host range displayed by T. japonicus under similar laboratory conditions. Specifically, in addition to its coevolved host H. halys, T. mitsukurii successfully parasitized the majority of tested pentatomid species and one scutellerid, although with highly variable emergence rates. Host egg sizes positively affected parasitoid size and female egg load. Further studies, testing more complex systems that involve olfactory cues from host and host plants, will simulate different aspects of the parasitoid host location behavior under field conditions, allowing in-depth evaluation of the possible risks associated with the use of T. mitsukurii as a biocontrol agent of H. halys.


2014 ◽  
Vol 104 (6) ◽  
pp. 781-787 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Tognon ◽  
J. Sant'Ana ◽  
S.M. Jahnke

AbstractThe egg parasitoid Telenomus podisi is a natural control agent of pentatomids, including Euschistus heros and Tibraca limbativentris, and success of parasitism is dependent upon the parasitoid finding the host. We tested the influence of host egg volatiles and the synthetic sex pheromone (zingiberenol) of T. limbativentris on chemotaxic behaviour of T. podisi, as well as, the impact of the original host on parasitoid selection. We used mated female T. podisi (48 h old) that emerged from the eggs of T. limbativentris or E. heros. The bioassays related to chemotaxy were performed in a Y-tube olfactometer and, to parasitism success, in laboratory and semi-field conditions. Telenomus podisi females that emerged from either the stink bug eggs, chose the pheromone more than control, or the pheromone plus eggs of E. heros in the semi-field bioassay, led to greater parasitism. Females that emerged from E. heros eggs chose egg volatiles from their original host rather than those from T. limbativentris, while females emerging from T. limbativentris, chose the egg volatiles of both hosts equally. When T. limbativentris was the original host, T. podisi females parasitized T. limbativentris over E. heros, while those emerging from E. heros exclusively parasitized E. heros eggs. These results demonstrated that T. podisi is more likely to parasitize the host in which it developed and that the original host can exert influence on the choice by those parasitoids. Understanding how the factors that mediate host–parasitoid communication are interrelated can help biological control programmes establish more effective and reliable tools with T. podisi.


2020 ◽  
Vol 137 ◽  
pp. 105310
Author(s):  
Adeney de Freitas Bueno ◽  
Érica Caroline Braz ◽  
Bruna Magda Favetti ◽  
José de Barros França-Neto ◽  
Gabriela Vieira Silva

2010 ◽  
Vol 45 (5) ◽  
pp. 442-449 ◽  
Author(s):  
Raúl Alberto Laumann ◽  
Maria Carolina Blassioli Moraes ◽  
Joseane Padilha da Silva ◽  
Afrânio Márcio Corrêa Vieira ◽  
Samantha da Silveira ◽  
...  

The objective of this work was to determine the potential of five species of Scelionidae wasps - Telenomus podisi, Trissolcus basalis, Trissolcus urichi, Trissolcus teretis and Trissolcus brochymenae - as natural enemies of the neotropical stink bug Dichelops melacanthus, and to determine if the presence of eggs of other stink bug species influences the parasitism and development of the parasitoids. Two kinds of experiments were done in laboratory: without choice of hosts (eggs of D. melacanthus) and with choice (eggs of D. melacanthus and of Euschistus heros). Biological parameters, including proportion of parasitism, immature survivorship, progeny sex ratio, immature stage development period, and host preference were recorded. All the evaluated parasitoids can parasitize and develop on D. melacanthus eggs. The first choice of eggs did not influence the proportion of D. melacanthus eggs parasitized by Tr. basalis, Tr. teretis or Tr. brochymenae. However, D. melacanthus eggs as the first choice of Te. podisi and Tr. urichi increased, respectively, 9 and 14 times the chance for parasitism on eggs of this species. Behavioral and ecological aspects of parasitoids should be considered prior to their use in biological control programs.


2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mokhtar Abdulsattar Arif ◽  
Tuğcan Alınç ◽  
Salvatore Guarino ◽  
Stefano Colazza ◽  
Antonino Cusumano ◽  
...  

Egg parasitoids foraging for suitable hosts scattered in the environment rely mainly on chemical cues. Elucidating the chemical ecology of natural enemies is important in the development of effective and successful strategies for conservation biological control. In this context, the host cuticular hydrocarbons, which are exploited by several species of egg parasitoids as contact kairomones, could be used to retain them by providing information about the presence and the sex of adults of the target species: sex is important because only females of the host species lay the eggs that can be subsequently utilized for parasitoid reproduction. However, the chemical basis of host sex discrimination in egg parasitoids is not well understood. We carried out behavioral and chemical bioassays to investigate the role played by contact chemical cues left by adults of the brown marmorated stink bug, Halyomorpha halys Stål, in host egg searching behavior and adult host sex discrimination by the egg parasitoid Trissolcus japonicus (Ashmead). A first set of bioassays showed that parasitoids spent more time exploring patches contaminated with chemicals associated with adult H. halys females compared with adult males. Similar responses were displayed by T. japonicus when hexane extracts of H. halys were tested suggesting that non-polar chemical compounds are involved in host sex discrimination. GC-MS analysis of hexane extracts revealed quantitative differences in the cuticular compounds of the two sexes, with 1-hexadecene (more abundant in males) being the most important component in determining these differences. Hexane extracts of H. halys females blended with synthetic 1-hexadecene significantly reduced the wasps’ arrestment responses compared to crude extracts.


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