Pestering Capitalism. Thinking with Halyomorpha halys about multispecies relations and ecological unsustainability

Many non-human species trouble human-oriented forms of multispecies life, which leads to classifying some of these species as pests. One of the fields of daily life most disturbed by the action of pests is modern capitalist agriculture, leading to different types of pest management by which human beings attempt to eliminate pests’ opposition to the anthropogenic appropriation of the work/energy of multispecies assemblages, an appropriation which is essential for capital circulation. In dominant modern capitalist cosmologies, the disturbances caused by pests automatically justify and require their attempted extermination. Without denying that pests are troubling, I argue that the technoscientific framing of our relationship with these species is insufficient as a way of understanding and interacting with them. Rather than exclusively seeing pests as a problem, the manner in which humans interact with these species points us to several foundational - and in themselves problematic – aspects of modern capitalist world-ecology. Taking my research on networks concerned with kiwifruit farming and commercialization in Portugal as a basis for my arguments, I look at how actors in these networks propose to deal with Halyomorpha halys, the brown marmorated stink bug, in an attempt to think with this species about the (inextricably connected) socio-ecological unsustainability of modern capitalist world-ecology and the bio-thanato-political strategies of immunization employed to deal with non-human species in this political ecological system.

Halyomorpha halys fixed as the type species of the genus Halyomorpha (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Pentatomidae)

The genus Halyomorpha Mayr, 1864 (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Pentatomidae: Pentatominae: Cappaeini) was established based on a single species, Halys timorensis Westwood, 1837 (currently a junior subjective synonym of Halyomorpha picus (Fabricius, 1794)). The examination of the voucher specimens identifi ed as Halyomorpha timorensis by Mayr, a syntype of Halys timorensis, and syntypes of Pentatoma halys Stål, 1855 revealed that: i) Halyomorpha timorensis (Westwood), stat. restit., must be reinstated as a valid species, and not considered as a junior subjective synonym of H. picus; ii) Mayr’s specimens belong to two different species, Halyomorpha halys (Stål) and H. picus. The problem of double misidentification of the type species of Halyomorpha is resolved by action of the first revising author(s) according to the Article 70.3 of the ICZN (1999): we fi x here Pentatoma halys Stål, 1855 (= Halys timorensis sensu Mayr, nec Westwood) as the type species of Halyomorpha Mayr, 1864. A list of 36 valid species currently placed in Halyomorpha and their synonyms is compiled. We also issue a warning concerning the use of the citizen science approach for monitoring H. halys in Southeast Asia (which may also apply to other taxa): It is necessary to keep in mind that H. halys belongs to a group of habitually similar species (distributed from Pakistan and southern China to Indonesia and the Philippines) which cannot be identified with certainty without examination of their male genitalia; records merely based on observations or habitus photographs cannot be accepted as reliable.

Brown Marmorated Stink Bug (Halyomorpha halys Stål.) Attack Induces a Metabolic Response in Strawberry (Fragaria × ananassa Duch.) Fruit

The polyphagous brown marmorated stink bug (Halyomorpha halys Stål.) is an important pest in many countries. Recently it was noticed that it can feed on and cause damage to strawberries (Fragaria × ananassa Duch.). The metabolic response of strawberries to brown marmorated stink bug attacks was studied. Brown marmorated stink bugs attacked strawberry fruit which had 18% lower total sugar content compared to that of the control treatment. However, organic acid content had no significant difference among the three treatments, with the exception of shikimic acid, which had the highest content in the attacked fruit. Thirty-one phenolic compounds were identified. Results showed a strong effect on secondary metabolites due to H. halys attacks. Halyomorpha halys treatment had 27% higher total analyzed phenolic content compared to the indirect Halyomorpha halys treatment. The brown marmorated stink bug significantly increased total ellagic acid derivatives (33.1% to 37% higher), hydroxycinnamic acids (22.3% higher) and anthocyanins’ (39% higher) contents. Fruit attacked by Halyomorpha halys also had higher catechin and epicatechin content than that of the control treatments. This pest had a significant influence on the plant’s secondary metabolism, and this improved our understanding of how a strawberry plant reacts to the attacks of this very important pest. H. halys-infested fruit are not suitable for commercial production, due to the production of off-flavors.

Occurrence of Halyomorpha halys (Stål, 1855) (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) in Rhodes Island, Greece

The first finding of Halyomorpha halys in the island of Rhodes, Greece, is reported and the fast range expansion of this invasive species over the Aegean region is briefly discussed.

The Brown Marmorated Stink Bug (Halyomorpha halys Stål.) Influences Pungent and Non-Pungent Capsicum cultivars’ Pre- and Post-Harvest Quality

Halyomorpha halys is an important invasive pest that causes severe damage to fruits and vegetables. Peppers are susceptible to infestation by H. halys, resulting in yield losses. Plants respond to the insect infestation with a metabolic response. With this study, we attempted to determine the intensity of the metabolic response of infested peppers, how pungent and non-pungent peppers react to the infestation, and how the H. halys affects the post-harvest quality of both cultivars. The shelf life of the infested peppers did not change compared to the control treatments. We observed a drastic decrease in metabolite levels after storage in all three treatments in both cultivars, especially capsaicinoids, with an approximate decrease of 30% in the pericarp and 95% in the placenta of the pungent ‘Eris F1’. In some cases, the accumulation of metabolites was not limited to the fruit exposed to the H. halys infestation, but to the entire plant. We observed a 15-fold increase in capsaicinoid content in the infested fruits of cultivar ‘Eris F1’ and a 4-fold increase in the pericarp of cultivar ‘Lombardo tago’, which could lead to a possible further study on the defensive function of capsaicinoids and their use against H. halys.