A Major Pest of Cotton, Oxycarenus hyalinipennis (Heteroptera: Oxycarenidae) in the Bahamas

Abstract

Oxycarenus hyalinipennis (Fig. 1) is a member of the superfamily Lygaeoidea, family Oxycarenidae (Henry 1997), subfamily Oxycareninae. Originally named Aphanus tardus var. hyalinipennis , this species was described from Italy by Costa in 1847. Adults measure 4 to 4.3 mm long and are tapered anteriorly and rounded posteriorly; their thorax, head, antennae, and femora are black and their wings are translucent white, but this species is highly variable (Slater 1972). Males and females have similar coloration, but males are slightly smaller than females. There are 5 instars (Fig. 1), which have pink to red abdomens. Oxycarenus hyalinipennis has numerous synonyms and common names, but as an important pest of cotton worldwide, it is commonly referred to as “the cotton seed bug.” It not only feeds on other plants in the order Malvales, especially in the family Malvaceae, but also in Tiliaceae and Sterculiaceae (Slater & Baranowski 1994). Adults and nymphs suck oil from mature seeds and fluid from leaves of young stems to obtain moisture, according to Ananthakrishnan et al. (1982). If cotton seed bugs are present in sufficient numbers, the cotton fiber becomes stained during processing by the maceration of their bodies. In Israel during outbreaks, this insect has been reported as aggregating on various trees and shrubs including dates, figs, avocados, and persimmons. Many of these fruits were damaged, purportedly due to contamination with a pungent odor (Nakache & Klein 1992). Oxycarenus hyalinipennis has a worldwide distribution, although it has not been reported from North America. Because it has been intercepted numerous times at U.S. ports of entry and because it is already established on islands near the U.S. mainland, its arrival in the U.S. is expected. In the West Indies, Baranowski & Slater (2005) report it from the Turks and Caicos, Bahamas, Cayman Islands, and Hispaniola. It was not found during a preliminary survey along the entire eastern coast of Florida in 2006 (Brambila & Dobbs, unpublished data, 2007). The objectives of this study were to (1) collect observational data on O. hyalinipennis , and (2) determine the infestation levels of this pest on cotton in Great Inagua. Great Inagua was the site of a failed attempt to grow and cultivate cotton, Gossypium hirsutum L., in the early 20 th century. These cotton plantations lasted only a few years, but the cotton itself has persisted in a feral state and can be found as a roadside weed near Matthewtown and former settlements (Fig. 2). This made Great Inagua an excellent location to look for and study infestation levels of Oxycarenus hyalinipennis (Costa), a known pest of cotton. Three locations were chosen for survey along the western coast of Great Inagua (Fig. 2). Only