Journal of economic entomology最新文献

German cockroaches (Blattella germanica (L.)) are a persistent pest in affordable housing and studies indicate that residents implement control on their own to deal with cockroaches within their homes. While many do-it-yourself (DIY) control options have proven ineffective, baits are widely considered to be a viable DIY solution for residents who do not have access to professional pest control services. To evaluate their efficacy, we tested consumer-use baits (Combat gel bait, Combat bait stations, and Hot Shot liquid bait stations) in both laboratory two-choice assays and in-home assays, comparing them with professional gel baits (Vendetta Nitro, Advion Evolution, and Maxforce FC Magnum). All baits (consumer- and professional-grade) caused > 80% mortality within 14 d in laboratory assays, including against home-collected German cockroach populations. However, the in-home efficacy of consumer-grade baits in comparison to their performance in laboratory assays was inconsistent, with some baits resulting in significant declines in trap catch in 1 month (Hot Shot liquid bait stations), some taking longer (Combat gel bait), and some never showing a decline (Combat bait stations). Discrepancies between product performance in laboratory and in-home studies are concerning and suggest that laboratory assays alone might not be indicative of the potential for control, especially in the context of the more complex home environment. Failures of consumer-grade baits may require re-evaluation of current recommendations for the use of consumer-grade cockroach baits as a viable control option for residents struggling with cockroach infestations without access to professional pest management.

Marmalada hoverfly, Episyrphus balteatus De Geer (Diptera: Syrphidae), is a cosmopolitan fly species providing pest control and pollination services. As wheat aphids cause significant losses to global wheat production, a systematic evaluation of the predatory potential and biocontrol service functions of E. balteatus in wheat ecosystems was undertaken. The daily maximum prey consumption of third instar E. balteatus on the adult of Rhopalosiphum padi Linnaeus, Schizaphis graminum Rondani, and Sitobion miscanthi Takahashi (Hemiptera: Aphididae) were 250, 500, and 100 individuals/third instar larvae, respectively. The S. graminum population decline rates in cages after release of the third instars at ratios of 1:100 and 1:200 were 100% and 94.17%, respectively, 72-h after exposure. Feeding assays involving R. padi, S. graminum, and S. miscanthi showed a DNA detectability half-life of 4.17, 6.44, and 4.83 h, respectively, in third instar larvae of E. balteatus. Using multiplex polymerase chain reaction-based gut content analysis to detect prey DNA remains, we confirmed that E. balteatus larvae preyed upon R. padi, S. graminum, S. miscanthi, and Metopolophium dirhodum Walker (Hemiptera: Aphididae) in the field experiments during 2022 to 2024. A significant positive correlation was also found between corrected prey detection rate and aphid population dynamics. These results provide an entry point for understanding the ecological service function of E. balteatus and developing the biological control strategy of the wheat aphid management.

The swede midge, Contarinia nasturtii Kieffer (Diptera:Cecidomyiidae), is a gall-forming insect pest that targets cruciferous plants. Since its introduction to North America in the early 2000s, the midge has expanded its range to include farming regions in Quebec and the Northeastern USA. In this study, we evaluated the susceptibility of 4 popular kale varieties-Green Curly-(Vates), Red Russian, Red Curly (RedBor), and Lacinato/Tuscan-to swede midge infestation in on-farm trials conducted over consecutive years. Our results indicate substantial variability in susceptibility among varieties, with Red Russian kale consistently exhibiting the highest damage incidence across both years. These findings provide valuable insights for developing effective integrated pest management (IPM) strategies tailored to organic and small-scale vegetable farming contexts, emphasizing the role of crop genetic resources in pest mitigation and sustainable agriculture. In addition, this study highlights the potential of non-chemical approaches for managing swede midge, leading to a more diverse and adaptable IPM toolbox for growers.

A sticky trap is a simple, low-cost method for the field estimation of insect population density. The present study was investigated the attraction of Stomoxys calcitrans using 5 different colors of sticky trap (blue, gray, transparent, white, and yellow). Throughout the sampling period, the sticky traps collected 1,559 S. calcitrans adults, of which 560 (36%) were females and 999 (64%) were males. The mean numbers of S. calcitrans on the 3 dairy cattle farms sampled differed significantly among the different trap colors, with both sexes being preferentially attracted to white or blue sticky traps. However, the white sticky traps were more effective at trapping S. calcitrans than the yellow and transparent sticky traps. Thus, a white-colored fly trap design was recommended for monitoring purposes.

The Anoplophora chinensis (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) (Forster), a serious phytophagous pest threatening Castanea mollissima Blume and Castanea seguinii Dode, poses risks of ecological imbalance, significant economic loss, and increased management difficulties if not properly controlled. This study employs optimized MaxEnt models to analyze the potential distribution areas of A. chinensis and its host plants under current and future climate conditions, identifying their movement pathways and relative dynamics. Results indicate that all models achieved an average AUC value exceeding 0.86, demonstrating low complexity and high predictive accuracy. The key climatic variables influencing the geographic distribution of A. chinensis and its host plants include temperature and moisture-related bioclimatic variables such as mean diurnal range, minimum temp of coldest month, mean temp of wettest quarter, annual precipitation, precipitation of driest month, and precipitation seasonality. Under both current and future conditions, these 3 species are primarily distributed in the southwestern regions of China. Notably, the suitable growth area for all 3 species shows varying degrees of increase. Additionally, C. mollissima and C. seguinii exhibit a trend of eastward displacement in response to climate change. Overall, the findings provide significant practical value for the monitoring, early warning, and targeted control strategies for A. chinensis. Furthermore, these results offer a basis for timely conservation strategies to mitigate the potential impacts of climate change.

Methoxyfenozide is an insecticide with a unique mode of action on the insect ecdysone receptor and has been registered for the control of insect pests all over the world. In the present work, Spodoptera frugiperda was exposed to sublethal and lethal concentrations of methoxyfenozide to determine its impact on specific biological traits, metabolic enzyme activity, and the expression of detoxification enzymes. The result showed that 72-h posttreatment with LC50 and LC70 of methoxyfenozide significantly reduced the fecundity (eggs/female) of the F0 generation compared to those of the control group. However, the duration of the prepupal period was significantly increased. The exposure to LC10, LC30, LC50, and LC70 concentrations of methoxyfenozide significantly extended the developmental duration of larvae in F1 individuals. The fecundity of the F1 generation was significantly decreased, and the population life table parameters of F1 were also significantly affected. The activity of carboxylesterases showed little significant change, whereas the activity of glutathione S-transferases (GSTs) and cytochrome P450 monooxygenases (P450s) was significantly altered after exposure to LC10, LC30, LC50, and LC70 of methoxyfenozide. In total, 24-, 48-, and 96-h posttreatment with LC10, LC30, LC50, and LC70 of methoxyfenozide could cause upregulation of P450 genes such as CYP6AE44, CYP6B39, CYP9A26, CYP9A58, CYP9A59, and CYP9A60, as well as GST genes including GSTe3, GSTe9, GSTe10, GSTe15, GSTo2, GSTs1, GSTs5, GSTm2, and GSTm3. These findings could be instrumental in elucidating the molecular mechanisms underlying the sublethal and lethal effects of methoxyfenozide to S. frugiperda.

Industrial hemp, Cannabis sativa L., is an herbaceous annual plant that has recently re-entered crop production both in the field and in greenhouses within the United States. Like many agronomic crops, hemp production faces several insect pest challenges. Aphids pose a unique threat to hemp, being found in both indoor and outdoor production. Aphids affect hemp by reducing plant growth, bud production, concentrations of cannabinoids, and removing photosynthate. Additionally, aphids are vectors of plant viruses, and several species are known to transmit viruses to hemp. Limited research exists regarding the host suitability of hemp for common aphid pests in Louisiana. Thus, experiments were conducted to determine the life table statistics and feeding behaviors of Myzus persicae, Aphis gossypii, and Phorodon cannabis to determine the potential pest population dynamics of these pests on hemp. Hemp cv. Maverick was not a good host for either A. gossypii or M. persicae, resulting in negative intrinsic rates of increase and no sustained colonization. Although individuals of M. persicae and P. cannabis initiated probes at comparable rates, M. persicae probe durations were significantly shorter and probes were more frequent, indicating an absence of positive responses to probing hemp. A significant difference was observed in the percentage of individuals of A. gossypii initiating probes, and probe duration was significantly shorter than P. cannabis and significantly longer than M. persicae. Both A. gossypii and M. persicae spent significantly less time probing in phloem when compared with P. cannabis. These electrical penetration graph results indicate that A. gossypii and M. persicae do not find C. sativa cv. Maverick a suitable host; however, both species of aphids may still pose a threat to C. sativa production as virus vectors.

The invasive emerald ash borer (Agrilus planipennis Fairmaire) (EAB) has been devastating North American ash (Fraxinus spp.) resources for over 2 decades. In its native range, EAB attacks and kills primarily stressed ash trees. In North America, however, EAB also attacks healthy trees of every Fraxinus species encountered, most recently Oregon ash (Fraxinus latifolia Benth.). Successful EAB development has also been reported in European olive (Olea europaea L.). The recent detection of EAB in Oregon puts the future of these 2 hosts into question, as little is known about EAB's development in these species or how introduced biocontrol agents will respond. We conducted laboratory and field infestations of olive and ash in Delaware and Oregon to assess EAB development and associated parasitoid responses. We found no difference in the net population growth rate of EAB developing in Oregon ash versus green ash. However, these species supported significantly more population growth than olive, in which EAB net population growth rate was zero, with most larvae dying prematurely. Artificially infested olives were small, which may have negatively impacted phloem availability and larval survival. Future studies should be conducted investigating EAB development on larger olive material. Although no parasitism was observed in infested olive, as EAB larvae seldom reached life stages (third or fourth instars) susceptible to larval parasitism, late-instar larvae developing in Oregon ash were attacked by both Tetrastichus planipennisi Yang and Spathius galinae Belokobylskij and Strazanac, suggesting that biocontrol is a suitable option for this newly invaded region.

The efficacy of aerial application and chemigation of insecticides is not well explored for western bean cutworm, Striacosta albicosta (Smith), management in corn. In the short term, inadequate application of insecticides can lead to control failures when insect pests are not effectively targeted. In the longer term, exposure to sublethal insecticide concentrations can contribute to the evolution of insecticide resistance. The goal of this study was to compare aerial application and chemigation under simulated conditions to determine the most effective insecticide application method for managing S. albicosta. Three larval stages were exposed to the highest and lowest label rates of commercial formulations of bifenthrin (36.8 and 112.1 g a.i. ha-1) and chlorantraniliprole (52.7 and 75.1 g a.i. ha-1). Experiments were conducted in spray chambers, utilizing a carrier volume of 18.7 L ha-1 for aerial application and 1.57 cm ha-1 for chemigation. Mortality was recorded at 16, 24, and 41 h after infestation. The simulated aerial application was more effective than simulated chemigation in controlling S. albicosta, resulting in 100% mortality 24 h after infestation. Within the chemigation applications, chlorantraniliprole treatments were effective at both rates for all instars, while the high rate of bifenthrin exhibited greater efficacy than the lower rate. In conclusion, it was evidenced that the same insecticide active ingredients do not yield equivalent efficacy when applied via aerial application compared to chemigation. The present study highlights the importance of selecting appropriate insecticide application methods in controlling S. albicosta larvae.

Species distribution modeling is extensively used for predicting potential distributions of invasive species. However, an ensemble modeling approach has been less frequently used particularly pest species. The bird cherry-oat aphid Rhopalosiphum padi L. is an important pest of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) worldwide and causes 30% yield losses. Here, we developed a series of ensemble models with multiple variables to predict the habitat suitability of this pest at a global scale. The current suitable habitat for R. padi is mainly distributed in East Asia, South Asia, Europe, southern North America, southern South America, eastern Australia, and New Zealand. The highly suitable regions are primarily distributed in east of China, Japan, most of North America, southeastern South America, most of Europe, and southeastern edge of Australia. In future scenarios, the suitable habitats will undergo a significant contraction overall northward, and no moderately nor highly suitable habitats are predicted for this pest in other areas. Our findings indicate that a high risk of R. padi outbreaks currently exists for the highly suitable regions mentioned above, especially with wheat cultivation, but the capacity of R. padi to cause such outbreaks will weaken in the future. Climate-associated factors are significantly more important than land use, elevation and host-plant factors, and the BIO11 (mean temperature of the coldest quarter), in particular, predominated in shaping projections of R. padi's distribution. The predicted distribution pattern and key ecological factors affecting this pattern identified herein could provide important guidance for developing management policies targeting this economically important pest.