Biological Control Potential and Drawbacks of Three Zoophytophagous Mirid Predators against Bemisia tabaci in the United States.

Miridae (Hemiptera) of the tribe Dicyphini are important zoophytophagous predators use to control pest arthropods in vegetable crops. However, the risk that their herbivory may cause economic damage could hinder their application as useful biocontrol agents and may limit the likelihood they would meet regulatory requirements for importation. We conducted field cage studies to assess the predation capacity and tomato plant damage of three mirid species established in south USA, a known biocontrol agent (Nesidiocoris tenuis), and two native species (Macrolophus praeclarus and Engytatus modestus). All three species significantly reduced the number of whiteflies (Bemisia tabaci) on tomato plants compared to tomato plants without mirids. More damage, evaluated as the number of necrotic rings, was observed on tomato plants with E. modestus and N. tenuis compared to M. praeclarus. In our experiments that included sesame plants (Sesamum indicum) with tomato plants, mirid numbers increased despite a low number of prey, thus showing a benefit of the plant-feeding habit of these predators. USA's established mirids may therefore prove to be immediately available biological agents for the management of present and future tomato pests.

Reproductive Ecology of the Giant African Snail in South Florida: Implications for Eradication Programs.

Giant African snail (Achatina fulica (Bowdich, 1822)), an important invasive snail, was recently found in South Florida, USA. An extensive eradication effort was initiated consisting of pesticide applications, debris removal and hand collections. We studied the reproduction capacity and population dynamics of snails collected from 22 populations for two years to help evaluate the likely success of the eradication program. A total of 23,890 snails, ranging from 25-131 mm, were measured, dissected and the number of eggs in each snail counted. Gravid snails ranged from 48-128 mm. Only 5% of snails had eggs, which were found year round. As the snails increased in size, they were more likely to include reproducing individuals. However, the percentage of gravid snails peaked when snails were approximately 90 mm. Although more prevalent, small (<65 mm) adults contributed fewer eggs to the population than the larger snails. We evaluated the effect of control measures on six populations having >1000 adult snails and used data from the two largest populations to investigate how environmental factors (temperature, humidity, and rainfall) interacted with population dynamics and control measures. More snails were collected in weeks with high humidity and more gravid snails were collected when the temperature was higher. The addition of metaldehyde pesticides had the greatest impact on population dynamics by reducing snail numbers. In populations with fewer snails, their numbers were already declining before the use of metaldehyde, although the new treatment accelerated the process. As a consequence of the eradication program, egg-producing snails were no longer collected from most populations by the end of the study. The aggressive and persistent control efforts apparently lead to reduced populations of egg producing snails, eventually resulting in local extinctions of this important pest.

Developing detection and monitoring strategies for Planococcus minor (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae).

A pheromone-based system to locate and monitor Planococcus minor (Maskell), a pest of over 250 plants including citrus, grape, and cacao, was tested. The difficulty in distinguishing P. minor from the citrus mealybug, P. citri, makes finding and evaluating the impact of the pest challenging. Studies conducted in Puerto Rico determined that synthetic P. minor pheromone lures preaged 120 d in the field caught similar number of males as lures not aged (fresh). Molecular analysis of trapped mealybug males using mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase-1, the internal transcriber space two locus, and 28S-D2 gene showed the pheromone traps to be species specific. Traps baited with P. minor pheromone were used to monitor the pest in south Florida and to locate potential infestations. P. minor males were found at all locations studied in South Florida and were present in low numbers (1.03 +/- 0.69 mean +/- SE/trap/14 d). Over 14,000 terminals, fruit, and flowers were visually inspected over a 6 mo period of peak trap catches before the first adult P. minor female was found. The synthetic pheromone lures proved to be an effective tool to locate and monitor this pest new to the continental United States.