Anoplophora glabripennis, an invasive longhorned beetle, has the potential to damage fruit trees in Japan.

Invasive Anoplophora glabripennis recently became established in Japan and has caused heavy damage to several street-tree species. Overseas, A. glabripennis infests trees of the genera Acer and Populus as common host plants, and Malus, Pyrus, and Prunus (Rosaceae), including apple, pear, and plum trees; it therefore poses a potential risk to the production of economically valuable fruits in Japan. Fruit farms in areas already invaded by A. glabripennis are now threatened with tree infestation. We aimed to determine the potential damage to major fruit species in Japan. In the laboratory, we determined if the adult beetle is attracted to the odor of each of these tree species' branches; two confirmed host plant species and five Rosaceae fruit species, as well as its feeding preferences among branches of one host plant and the five fruit trees and its oviposition preferences among them. Among the fruit species, cherry branch had the highest rate of odor orientation by males. The feeding-preference assay showed that, besides the host plant, Japanese pear was the most consumed among the fruit trees. The potential risk of A. glabripennis laying eggs on fruit-tree branches was high for Japanese pear and above zero for plum, apple, and cherry branches.

Differences in Male Mate Recognition between the Invasive Anoplophora glabripennis (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) and Japanese Native A. malasiaca.

The Asian longicorn beetle Anoplophora glabripennis is a recently arrived invasive species to Japan. The Japanese native A. malasiaca shows an extensive overlap with A. glabripennis with host plants, niches, and emergence season. Hybridization between these two species is suspected in Japan. The surface of the female is covered with contact sex pheromones that elicit male mating behavior within species. We evaluated the contact pheromonal activity of crude extract and fractions of female A. glabripennis coated on a black glass model and revealed a hydrocarbon fraction and a blend of fractions to show activity but relatively weak, suggesting the presence of other unknown active compounds. Few male A. glabripennis showed mating behavior when they were exposed to a crude extract of female A. malasiaca. However, a considerable number of A. malasiaca males mounted and showed abdominal bending behavior when presented with glass models that were coated with each extract of female A. glabripennis and A. malasiaca. Gomadalactones are essential contact pheromone components that elicit mating behavior in male A. malasiaca; however, we could not detect them in female A. glabripennis extract. Here, we investigated the possible reasons for this phenomenon and the difference in male mate recognition systems between these two species.

Taxonomical Study of Noteworthy Species of Botryosphaeria in Japan.

The reexamination of the fungal genus Botryosphaeria on 12 plant species of 10 families was carried out based on molecular phylogenetic analyses using the regions of translation elongation factor 1-α, ß-tubulin, DNA-directed RNA polymerase II subunit, and internal transcribed spacer region of rDNA and morphological characteristics. Japanese isolates were divided into five clades and include Botryosphaeria dothidea, B. qingyuanensis, B. sinensis, and Botryosphaeria spp. Two species, B. qingyuanensis and B. sinensis have been newly added to the Japanese mycoflora, but their host plants are not specified. Botryosphaeria tenuispora isolated from Leucothoe fontanesiana and insect galls on fruits of Aucuba japonica has been proposed as a new species.