IMPLICATIONS OF TREE MICROHABITAT PREFERENCES OF COMPSILURA CONCINNATA (DIPTERA: TACHINIDAE) FOR ITS EFFECTIVENESS AS A GYPSY MOTH PARASITOID

1982 ◽  
Vol 114 (7) ◽  
pp. 617-622 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ronald M. Weseloh

AbstractTethered gypsy moth larvae, Lymantria dispar (L.) (Lepidoptera: Lymantriidae), placed in various tree microhabitats were most heavily parasitized by Compsilura concinnata (Meigen) (Diptera: Tachinidae) near the ground especially on leaves. In laboratory experiments, hosts were parasitized primarily between 6:00 AM and 6:00 PM (E.S.T.), with little parasitism at night. These data suggest that in the field, this tachinid will most efficiently attack young gypsy moth caterpillars, as instars 1 to 3 are the only ones consistently on or near foliage during daylight. C. concinnata females successfully parasitized young hosts, but larval development on 2nd instars was twice as long as that on 4th instars. Thus, only one generation of parasitoids on gypsy moths is likely per year. Results indicate that methods for improving the effectiveness of this parasitoid should emphasize increasing adult numbers early in the season.

1987 ◽  
Vol 119 (9) ◽  
pp. 765-771 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pedro Barbosa ◽  
Peter Martinat

AbstractThe role of starvation, the occurrence of mating, and delays and the onset of mating on the retention of eggs by the gypsy moth, Lymantria dispar (L.), were evaluated. The mating status of female gypsy moths did influence egg retention.Mating delays did not affect egg retention. Differences in the number of females retaining some eggs were found among females whose larvae had been reared on different host plants. The amount of food consumed had a significant effect on egg retention. Partial starvation had an impact on egg retention and on larval and pupal development, pupal size, and total egg production. The greater the starvation the greater the egg retention. The ecological implications of these results are discussed.


1994 ◽  
Vol 29 (3) ◽  
pp. 339-346 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevin W. Thorpe ◽  
Ralph E. Webb ◽  
Jeffrey R. Aldrich ◽  
Kathy M. Tatman

The effects of sticky barrier bands, augmentative releases of the spined soldier bug, Podisus maculiventris (Say), and the deployment of P. maculiventris pheromone on gypsy moth, Lymantria dispar (L.), larval density in the canopy of oak trees were tested. Sticky barrier bands used alone reduced larval gypsy moth density by ≈35%. The release of 5,810 P. maculiventris nymphs per tree or the deployment of P. maculiventris pheromone to trees on which sticky barrier bands had been applied had no additional effect on gypsy moth larval density. None of the treatments affected the number of gypsy moth egg masses produced. Significantly more P. maculiventris adults were observed on trees with the pheromone, but higher numbers of nymphs were not subsequently observed on these trees. Counts of gypsy moths beneath burlap bands prior to gypsy moth pupation were about four times higher on unbanded than on banded trees, but counts of pupae beneath burlap bands did not differ between treatments.


2010 ◽  
Vol 62 (4) ◽  
pp. 1021-1025
Author(s):  
M. Milenkovic ◽  
V. Ducic ◽  
B. Milovanovic

The connection between the solar flux at 2.8 GHz (based on mean monthly values) and the outbreaks of gypsy moths (Lymantria dispar L.) in Serbia was investigated. The researches included six outbreaks from 1952 to 2007. The average values of the solar flux ranged between 83.8 and 101.8 sfu during the outbreaks, whereas they were between 147.9 and 188.3 sfu for the periods without outbreaks. The results of the research showed that the increase in the number of gypsy moths appears when the values of the solar flux at 2.8 GHz range from 70 to 120 sfu.


1991 ◽  
Vol 123 (5) ◽  
pp. 1047-1055 ◽  
Author(s):  
R.S. Bourchier

AbstractAll larval instars of Compsilura concinnata (Meigan) (Diptera: Tachinidae) develop in the midgut of the gypsy moth [Lymantria dispar (L.) (Lepidoptera: Lymantriidae)] between the peritrophic membrane and gut wall. Parasitoid larvae placed artificially in the host haemocoel quickly moved to this characteristic position. There was a positive relationship between parasitoid size, as measured by the weight of the puparium, and the potential fecundity of female flies. When C. concinnata parasitized third-instar larval hosts, there were fewer successful multiple emergences, parasitoid larvae took longer to develop, and puparia were significantly smaller than those of parasitoids attacking fifth-instar hosts.Gypsy moth larvae grew more slowly on diets supplemented with 0.5 and 2.5% tannic acid than on non-supplemented diets. Similarly, C. concinnata females were smaller (with associated reduction in fecundity) when emerging from hosts feeding on the tannin diets than when hosts were feeding on control diets. The effect of tannic acid on the parasitoid was indirect and was the result of a reduction in host quality on the tannin diets. Reduction in parasitoid fecundity associated with tritropic interactions (among the host plant, the gypsy moth, and the parasitoid) may provide a possible explanation for the irregular impact of C. concinnata on gypsy moth populations.


Insects ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 175
Author(s):  
Yiming Wang ◽  
Robert L. Harrison ◽  
Juan Shi

The life-history traits of the gypsy moth, Lymantria dispar L. (Lepidoptera: Erebidae), have been observed to vary with larval population density, which can increase significantly during an outbreak of this pest. Laboratory studies on density-dependent variation in gypsy moth development have focused on single populations and were limited to comparing solitary larvae with groups of larvae reared at a single density. To evaluate how density-dependent impacts on development vary with different populations and subspecies of L. dispar, we compared the effects of rearing larvae of a European gypsy moth (L. dispar dispar L.) population from Connecticut, USA; and larvae of two populations of the Asian gypsy moth (L. dispar asiatica Vnukovskij) from Guizhou and Hebei provinces in China. Larvae were reared on an artificial diet at densities of one, three, five, seven, and nine larvae per 115 mL container, and the duration of larval development, percentage of surviving larvae, and the rates of pupation and emergence were measured at each density. A two-tailed response to density variation with values falling away on both sides from a peak or climbing from a base was observed for all three populations tested, with the most rapid larval development and the highest values of survival, pupation, and emergence observed at a density of five larvae/container. Although differences in larval development time, survival, pupation and emergence were observed among the different populations under the conditions of our study, our findings indicate that density-dependent effects on the development of different gypsy moth subspecies and populations follow the same trends.


Insects ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 146 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yao Xu ◽  
Sufang Zhang ◽  
Hongbin Wang ◽  
Mei Wang ◽  
Guohong Li

The gypsy moth, Lymantria dispar, is among the most destructive quarantine pests of forests. Here, we reconstructed the genetic structure and determined the population differentiation of gypsy moths across its distribution range at different times. This information could be used to both improve the prevention and detection of gypsy moths in the field. Using 31 newly designed species-specific primers targeting fragments of 216–1102 bp, we identified 103 full-length cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) gene sequences from eight fresh samples and 95 L. dispar specimens collected between 1955 and 1996, mainly in China. Combining 103 full-length COI gene sequences with 146 COI gene sequences from Genbank or DNA barcode libraries, we analyzed the genetic differentiation, gene flow and haplotypes between gypsy moth populations in order to reflect the genetic structure and population dynamics of gypsy moths. We discovered 25 previously unknown haplotypes from old gypsy moth specimens. We found that the genetic diversity among gypsy moth populations (collected in the same region at different time points) was relatively high. Furthermore, the genetic structure of Chinese geographical populations (Heilongjiang, Liaoning, Beijing) in different years was distinct. Our results suggested that some gypsy moths in China showed the genetic affinity with European gypsy moths (a sub-species of gypsy moths found mainly in Europe).


Forests ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. 1100 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yifan Zuo ◽  
D. K. Kurenshchikov ◽  
Jinyong Yu ◽  
Yuanping Zou ◽  
Yiming Wang ◽  
...  

The gyspy moth Lymantria dispar Linnaeus, a widely distributed leaf-eating pest, is considered geographically isolated in the world, with two Asian gypsy moth subspecies, Lymantria dispar asiatica and Lymantria dispar japonica. In China, only one subspecies, L. d. asiatica, has been observed. In this study, we characterized gypsy moth diversity and divergence using 427 samples covering a wide range of the species distribution, with a focus on sampling along a latitudinal gradient in China. We combine the quantitative analysis of male genitalia and the genetic diversity analysis of nine microsatellite loci of nuclear genes nuclear genes to study the structure of gypsy moth individuals in 23 locations in the world and the male genitalia of gypsy moths in some areas. In mixed ancestry model-based clustering analyses based on nuclear simple sequence repeats, gypsy moths were divided into three well-known subspecies, a unique North American cluster, and a southern Chinese cluster with differentiation between the Asian gypsy moth and European gypsy moth. We also found individuals identified as European gypsy moths in two distant regions in China. The results of a quantitative analysis of male genitalia characteristics were consistent with an analysis of genetic structure and revealed the differentiation of gypsy moths in southern China and of hybrids suspected to be associated with L. d. japonica in the Russian Far East. Admixture in gypsy moths can be explained by many factors such as human transport. In China, we detected European gypsy moths, and found unexpectedly high genetic diversity within populations across a wide range of latitudes.


2021 ◽  
pp. 030098582110226
Author(s):  
Elise E. B. LaDouceur ◽  
Ann E. Hajek

European gypsy moths ( Lymantria dispar dispar) are an invasive species in North America, and are listed by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature as one of the 100 most destructive invasive species worldwide. They have several known viruses, some of which are used as biological control agents. However, there are no detailed descriptions of many entomopathogenic viral infections, including in European gypsy moths, using bright-field microscopy. In this study, 11 European gypsy moth caterpillars were evaluated histologically: 4 were experimentally infected with Lymantria dispar multicapsid nucleopolyhedrovirus (LdMNPV; Baculoviridae); 4 were experimentally infected with Lymantria dispar cytoplasmic polyhedrosis virus (LdCPV; Reoviridae); 3 control animals were uninfected. A complete tissue set was evaluated in all animals from all groups using bright-field microscopy, including epidermis, cuticle, striated muscle, tracheae, foregut, midgut, hindgut, Malpighian tubules, hemocytes, fat body, and nervous system. LdMNPV-infected caterpillars had marked karyomegaly and intranuclear viral inclusions in cells of the epidermis, tracheae, fat body, and hemocytes. LdMNPV-infected caterpillars also had hyperplasia and hypertrophy of epidermal and tracheal epithelial cells. LdCPV-infected caterpillars had numerous granular eosinophilic intracytoplasmic viral inclusions in midgut epithelial cells. Both LdMNPV-infected and LdCPV-infected caterpillars had atrophy of fat body adipocytes; this change was more pronounced in LdCPV-infected caterpillars. This work provides the first detailed descriptions of these viral infections in European gypsy moth caterpillars using bright-field light microscopy and provides images of normal histology from control caterpillars.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sawako Matsuki ◽  
Rika Toki ◽  
Yoko Watanabe ◽  
Kazuhiko Masaka

Abstract Outbreaks of the gypsy moth (Lymantria dispar japonica Motschulsky) cause serious defoliation in birch. A single year of defoliation has no significant impact on the trees, whereas continuous defoliation events could be fatal. How birch species avoid serious damage caused by gypsy moth outbreak is yet to be revealed. Trichomes on leaf surfaces of birch trees are an effective antiherbivore defense strategy. We examined a 1-yr delayed induction of glandular (GT) and nonglandular trichomes (NGT) on leaf surfaces caused by stress in white birch (Betula platyphylla Sukaczev var. japonica [Miq.] Hara) and monarch birch (Betula maximowicziana Regel). Saplings were subjected to four treatments in June 2009: herbivory (50% of the leaf area was grazed by gypsy moths), mechanical cutting (50% of the leaf area was cut using scissors), shading (50% light shading with a black sheet), and control (covered with a net to prevent herbivory). Then, the density of GT and NGT on early leaves was determined in April 2010. In both birch species, the density of GT was higher in herbivory than in other treatments. The density of GT due to mechanical cutting was higher than that in the control, but only for white birch. However, the density of NGT was lower after mechanical cutting than in other treatments for white birch. There were no differences in the density of NGT among treatments for monarch birch. These results show that 1-yr delayed induction of GT by herbivory was stronger in white birch than in monarch birch.


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