Halyomorpha halys (Stål) (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae), an invasive agricultural pest from Asia, has established in much of the USA, where it has had significant, deleterious impacts on the production of various specialty crops. Trissolcus japonicus (Ashmead) (Hymenoptera: Scelionidae) is the predominant egg parasitoid of H. halys in Asia and considered a potential agent for classical biological control. Adventive T. japonicus populations have been detected in 15 US states since 2014 and its continued spread is anticipated, creating the impetus for developing optimized sampling methods for it that are informed by its foraging ecology. Yellow sticky cards (YSC) deployed in the lower and mid-canopy of Ailanthus altissima (Mill.) Swingle trees in Virginia captured statistically equivalent numbers of T. japonicus. Season-long monitoring of T. japonicus and H. halys over two seasons resulted in significant correlations between captures of T. japonicus and H. halys adults, second instar nymphs, and all life stages combined, revealing spatiotemporal synchrony between the parasitoid and its host. Inspection of felled pheromone-baited and non-baited A. altissima showed no effect of baiting with the H. halys aggregation pheromone on H. halys egg mass abundance. Similarly, captures of T. japonicus in pheromone-baited and non-baited trees were not significantly different. Augmenting YSC with H. halys egg masses or n-tridecane did not improve T. japonicus captures. Together, these results should improve the efficiency of T. japonicus surveillance efforts and provide important guidance for future research toward enhancing the sensitivity of sampling tools for it and the interpretation of its impacts on H. halys. / Master of Science in Life Sciences / The brown marmorated stink bug (BMSB), Halyomorpha halys (Stål) (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae), an invasive species from Asia, has become widely distributed throughout the United States as a serious pest of many important crops. Parasitic wasps that develop on eggs are often key natural enemies for reducing stink bug populations. The samurai wasp, Trissolcus japonicus (Ashmead) (Hymenoptera: Scelionidae), is the primary parasitic wasp of BMSB in Asia and is under evaluation for potential use in biological control programs. Populations of samurai wasps have been detected in the United States since 2014 without intentional introduction. Its continued spread is anticipated, creating the need for effective sampling methods to track its establishment. Yellow sticky cards (YSC) deployed in the lower and mid-canopy of tree of heaven in Virginia captured similar numbers of samurai wasps. Season-long monitoring of samurai wasps and BMSB over two seasons resulted in significant correlations between captures of samurai wasps and BMSB adults, second instar nymphs, and all life stages combined, revealing spatiotemporal overlap between the wasp and its host. Inspection of felled pheromone-baited and non-baited tree of heaven showed no effect of baiting with the BMSB aggregation pheromone on numbers of BMSB egg masses. Similarly, captures of samurai wasps in pheromone-baited and non-baited trees were not significantly different. Combining YSC with BMSB egg masses or n-tridecane did not improve samurai wasp captures. Together, these results provide important guidance for future research toward enhancing the sensitivity of sampling tools for samurai wasps and the interpretation of its impacts on BMSB.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:VTETD/oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/108098 |
| Date | 02 February 2022 |
| Creators | Dyer, Jared E. |
| Contributors | Entomology, Bergh, J. Christopher, Leskey, Tracy C., Kuhar, Thomas P. |
| Publisher | Virginia Tech |
| Source Sets | Virginia Tech Theses and Dissertation |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Format | ETD, application/pdf |
| Rights | In Copyright, http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ |
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