Temperature-Dependent Life Table Parameters of Brown Marmorated Stink Bug, Halyomorpha halys (Stål) (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) in the United States.

Brown marmorated stink bug, Halyomorpha halys (Stål) (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae), is a generalist pest that causes serious injury to a variety of crops around the world. After the first detection in the USA, H. halys became a serious threat to growers resulting in significant crop damage. Understanding the effect of temperature on H. halys development will help to achieve successful control by predicting the phenological timing of the pest. Here, life table parameters (survival, development, reproduction, and daily mortality) of H. halys were evaluated for New Jersey and Oregon populations in the US. Parameters were determined from field-collected and laboratory-reared individuals. The results indicated that New Jersey populations had higher levels of egg-laying than Oregon populations and exhibited higher and earlier fecundity peaks. Survival levels were similar between populations. Linear and nonlinear fit were used to estimate the minimum (14.3 °C), optimal (27.8 °C), and maximum (35.9 °C) temperatures where development of H. halys can take place. An age-specific fecundity peak (Mx = 36.63) was recorded at 936 degree days for New Jersey populations, while maximum fecundity (Mx = 11.85) occurred at 1145 degree days in Oregon. No oviposition was recorded at the lowest (15 °C) or highest (35 °C) trialed temperatures. Developmental periods increased at temperatures above 30 °C, indicating that such higher temperatures are suboptimal for H. halys development. Altogether the most optimal temperatures for population increase (rm) ranged from 25 to 30 °C. Survival rates of H. halys at suboptimal low temperatures of 8 °C (i.e., 61%) is comparable to previous reports. The present paper provides additional data and context from a range of experimental conditions and populations. Such temperature-related H. halys life table parameters can be used to provide determine the risk to susceptible crops.

First Evidence of CpGV Resistance of Codling Moth in the USA.

Codling moth (Cydia pomonella L.) is a very important pest in apple, pear, and walnut orchards worldwide, including the USA. Cydia pomonella granulovirus (CpGV) is used to control codling moth in organic and conventional production. Due to increasing codling moth infestations from organic apple orchards in Washington State, USA, five codling moth colonies (WA1-WA5) were screened for their susceptibility relative to the isolate GV-0001, the main active ingredient of Cyd-X®, using a discriminating concentration of 6 × 104 OB/mL. Compared to a susceptible laboratory colony, the observed results indicated that GV-0001 lacked efficacy against codling moth colony WA3. It was confirmed that WA3 was the first case of codling moth resistance to CpGV in the USA. Further testing of WA3 was performed on a range of CpGV isolates and a lack of efficacy was observed against additional isolates. However, three newly developed CpGV preparations can efficiently infect larvae from the resistant colony WA3. Our results suggest that there is an urgent need to monitor the situation in the USA, aiming to prevent the emergence or spread of additional codling moth populations with CpGV resistance. Strategies to sustain the efficacy of codling moth control using novel CpGV formulations need to be developed.

Correction: Fan et al. First Evidence of CpGV Resistance of Codling Moth in the USA. Insects 2022, 13, 533.

In the original publication [...].

Phenology of brown marmorated stink bug described using female reproductive development.

Temperature-based degree-day models describe insect seasonality and to predict key phenological events. We expand on the use of a temperature-based process defining timing of reproduction through the incorporation of female reproductive physiology for the invasive pentatomid species Halyomorpha halys, the brown marmorated stink bug. A five-stage ranking system based on ovary development was able to distinguish between the reproductive statuses of field-collected females. Application of this ranking method described aspects of H. halys' seasonality, overwintering biology, and phenology across geographic locations. Female H. halys were collected in the US from NJ, WV, NC, OR, and two sites in PA in 2006-2008 (Allentown, PA only) and 2012-2014. Results identify that H. halys enters reproductive diapause in temperate locations in the fall and that a delay occurs in developmental maturity after diapause termination in the spring. Modification of the Snyder method to identify biofix determined 12.7-hr photoperiod as the best fit to define initiation of reproduction in the spring. Applying the biofix, we demonstrated significant differences between locations for the rate at which the overwintering generation transition into reproductive status and the factors contributing to this difference require further study. For example, after including abiotic variables influencing development such as temperature and photoperiod (critical diapause cue), reproduction occurred earlier in OR and for an extended period in NJ. This data describe a method to investigate insect seasonality by incorporating physiological development across multiple regions that can clarify phenology for insects with overlapping generations.

Whole-farm mating disruption to manage Grapholita molesta (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) in diversified New Jersey orchards.

Fruit orchards in New Jersey are usually isolated from neighboring farms and diversified, often containing separate plantings of peach (Prunus spp.) and apple (Malus spp.). These crops can suffer significant damage from oriental fruit moth, Grapholita molesta (Busck) (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae). This study evaluated the effect of managing G. molesta by using sex pheromone-based mating disruption applied to both peaches and apples (whole-farm mating disruption) rather than treating either crop alone. In year 1 of the experiment, G. molesta mating disruption applied to the adjacent peach and apple blocks provided better control than treating peaches or apples alone. During year 2, treating these adjacent blocks or only treating apples controlled G. molesta equally well. G. molesta populations were so low at the end of year 2 that mating disruption was not applied against this pest during year 3. This allowed us to determine whether applying mating disruption for two consecutive years controlled G. molesta well enough that it eliminated the need mating disruption for three consecutive years. The mean cumulative number of G. molesta captured in plots where both peaches and apples had been treated did not exceed two moths per trap in the third year of this experiment. In contrast, G. molesta capture rebounded during August in peaches and apples that had not been treated with mating disruption the previous 2 yr. Implications for managing G. molesta by using mating disruption as a "whole-farm" tactic as well applying it for two consecutive years and not a third year are discussed.