Abstract
Simple SummaryInvasive species that are freed of associated natural predators increase in population and disrupt the management plans of growers. The brown marmorated stink bug, Halyomorpha halys, is an invasive species that originated in Asia. A promising management tactic for the species is to release an associated parasitoid, the samurai wasp, Trissolcus japonicus. Populations of the samurai wasp have begun to adventively establish in several regions, including Pennsylvania. In order to monitor and use the species as an alternative management strategy to insecticides, it is imperative to understand the baseline populations during the early establishment phase. The aims of this study were to determine if the samurai wasp is already present in commercial orchards in Pennsylvania, where the brown marmorated stink bug has been present in high numbers since approximately 2010. Native Trissolcus wasps were also identified. This study found the samurai wasp in eight counties in Pennsylvania with several orchards containing populations of the species within orchard blocks. These baseline data provide a starting point for controlling H. halys naturally, which was previously controlled only with broad-spectrum insecticides.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.
Highlights
We surveyed at fruit orchards in Pennsylvania with historically high populations of
T.japonicus, japonicus, we we determined determined that that Yellow Sticky Cards (YSC)
This study demonstrates that YSC allow for a wide survey for T. japonicus in space, with approximately
Summary
The brown marmorated stink bug, Halyomorpha halys (Stål) (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae), is an invasive species in many regions worldwide, and has become a fascinating case study creativecommons.org/licenses/by/ 4.0/). Halyomorpha halys is estimated to have first arrived in North America during the mid-1990s [1]. Populations did not increase to a severe economic outbreak status before 2008–2010, when, in the Mid-Atlantic region, some stone fruit growers lost over 90% of their crop in a single year [2]. Halyomorpha halys is native to China, South Korea, Taiwan and Japan, where it is an occasional pest of many crops [3]. In Asia, H. halys is partially controlled through applications of pyrethroid and neonicotinoid insecticides [3], and by natural enemies. A variety of natural enemies, including predators, pathogens and parasitoids, provide biological control for all life stages of
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