Abstract
Additive or synergistic effects among introduced and native insect and plant pathogen agents are necessary to achieve biological control of waterhyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes), a globally damaging aquatic weed. In field plots, plants were infested with waterhyacinth weevils (Neoechetina bruchi and N. eichhorniae) and leaves were scarred by weevil feeding. Subsequent infection by the fungal pathogen Cercospora piaropi caused necrotic lesions to form on leaves. Necrosis development was 7.5- and 10.5-fold greater in plots augmented with both weevils and C. piaropi and weevils alone, respectively, than in plots receiving only C. piaropi. Twenty-four days after weevil infestation, the percentage of laminar area covered by lesions on third-youngest and oldest live leaves was elevated 2.3–2.5-fold in plots augmented with weevils. Scar density and necrosis coverage on young leaf laminae were positively correlated, even though antipathogenic soluble peroxidases were elevated 3-fold in plots augmented with weevils alone or weevils and C. piaropi. Combined weevil and fungal augmentation decreased shoot densities and leaves per plant. In a no-choice bioassay, weevil feeding on oldest but not young leaves was reduced 44 two weeks after C. piaropi inoculation. Protein content and peroxidase activities were elevated 2–6-fold in oldest leaves three weeks after inoculation. Augmentation with both waterhyacinth weevils and C. piaropi led to the development of an additive biological control impact, mediated by one or more direct interactions between these agents, and not plant quality effects.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
E.E. Addor (1977) A field test of selected insects and pathogens for control of waterhyacinths Technical Report A-77-2. US Army Chief of Engineers Washington, DC. 44
J.A. Aquilar O.M. Camarena T.D. Center G. Bojórquez (2003) ArticleTitleBiological control of waterhyacinth in Sinaloa, Mexico with the weevils Neochetina eichhorniae and N. bruchi BioControl 48 595–608
R. Barreto R. Charudattan A. Pomella R. Hanada (2000) ArticleTitleBiological control of neotropical aquatic weeds with fungi Crop Prot. 19 697–703
R.D. Berger (1981) ArticleTitleComparison of the Gompertz and logistic equations to describe plant disease progress Phytopathology 71 716–719
A.J. Caesar (2000) Insect-pathogen synergisms are the foundation of weed biocontrol. N.R. Spencer (Eds) Proceedings of the X International Symposium on Biological Control of Weeds. 4–14 July 1999 Montana State University Bozeman, Montana. 793–798
A.J. Caesar (2003) ArticleTitleSynergistic interaction of soilborne plant pathogens and root-attacking insects in classical biological control of an exotic rangeland weed Biol. Control 28 144–153
T.D. Center (1985) Leaf life tables: a viable method for assessing sublethal effects of herbivory on waterhyacinth E.S. Delfosse (Eds) Proceedings VI International Symposium on Biological Control of Weeds. 19–25 August 1984 Agriculture Canada Vancouver, Canada 511–-524
T.D. Center (1987) ArticleTitleInsects, mites, and plant pathogens as agents of waterhyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes (Mart.) Solms) leaf and ramet mortality Lake Reservoir Mgmt 3 285–293 Occurrence Handle10.1080/07438148709354784
T.D. Center F.A. Dray G.P. Jubinsky M.J. Grodowitz (1999) ArticleTitleBiological control of waterhyacinth under conditions of maintenance management: can herbicides and insects be integrated? Environ Mgmt. 23 241–256
T.D. Center F.A. Dray G.P. Jubinsky A.J. Leslie (1999) ArticleTitleWaterhyacinth weevils (Neochetina eichhorniae and N. bruchi) inhibit waterhyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes) colony development Biol. Control 15 39–50
T.D. Center M.P. Hill H. Cordo M.H. Julien (2002) Waterhyacinth R. Van Driesche B. Blossey M. Hoddle R. Reardon (Eds) Biological Control of Invasive Plants in the Eastern United States. USDA Forest Service, Forest Health Technology Enterprise Team Morgantown WV, USA. 41–64
T.D. Center A.D. Wright (1991) ArticleTitleAge and phytochemical composition of waterhyacinth (Pontederiaceae) leaves determine their acceptability to Neochetina eichhorniae (Coleoptera: Cucurlionidae) Environ. Entomol. 20 323–334 Occurrence Handle1:CAS:528:DyaK3MXmtVerurY%3D
R. Charudattan (1984) Role of Cercospora rodmanii and other pathogens in the biological and integrated controls of waterhyacinth G. Thyagarajan (Eds) Proceedings of the International Conference on Water Hyacinth, Hyderabad, India, February 7–11, 1983. United Nations Environment Programme Nairobi, Kenya. 823–833 823–833
R. Charudattan (2001) ArticleTitleBiological control of weeds by means of plant pathogens: significance for integrated weed management in modern agro-ecology BioControl 46 229–260
R. Charudattan S.B. Linda M. Kluepfel Y.A. Osman (1985) ArticleTitleBiocontrol efficacy of Cercospora rodmanii on waterhyacinth Phytopathology 75 1263–1269 Occurrence Handle10.1094/Phyto-75-1263
R. Charudattan B.D. Perkins R.C. Littell (1978) ArticleTitleEffects of fungi and bacteria on the decline of arthopod-damaged waterhyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes) in Florida Weed Sci. 26 101–107
J. Coetzee M. Byrne M. Hill (2003) ArticleTitleFailure of Eccritotarsus catarinensis, a biological control agent of waterhyacinth, to persist on pickerelweed, a non-target host in South Africa, after forced establishment Biol. Control 28 229–236
A.F. Cofrancesco R.M. Stewart D.R. Sanders (1985) The impact of Neochetina eichhorniae (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) on waterhyacinth in Louisiana. E.S. Delfosse (Eds) Proceedings VI International Symposium on Biological Control of Weeds. 19–25 August 1984 Agriculture Canada Vancouver, Canada. 525–535
M.P. de Nooij A. Biere E.G.A. Linders (1992) Interaction of pests and pathogens through host disposition P.G. Ayres (Eds) Pests and Pathogens: Plant Responses to Foliar Attack. BIOS Scientific Publishers Oxford, UK 142–160
M. Denoth L. Frid J.H. Myers (2002) ArticleTitleMultiple agents in biological control: improving the odds? Biol Control 24 20–30
I.W. Forno M.H. Julien (2000) Success in biological control of aquatic weeds by arthropods G. Gurr S. Wratten (Eds) , Biological Control: Measures of Success. Kluwer Academic Publishers Dordrecht, The Netherlands 159–187
T.E. Freeman R. Charudattan K.E. Conway R.E. Cullen R.D. Martyn McKinney D.E. M.T. Olexa D.F. Reese (1981) Biological control of aquatic plants with pathogenic fungi. Technical Report A-81-1. US Army Chief of Engineers Washington, DC 46
J.C. Galbraith (1987) ArticleTitleThe pathogenicity of an Australian isolate of Acremonium zonatum to waterhyacinth, and its relationship to the biological control agent, Neochetina eichhorniae Australian J. Agric. Res. 38 219–229
B. Gopal K.P. Sharma (1981) Water-Hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes) Hindasia Delhi,India
R. Hammerschmidt J. Kuc (1995) Induced Resistance to Disease in Plants Kluwer Academic Publishers Boston
P.E. Hatcher (1995) ArticleTitleThree-way interactions between plant pathogenic fungi, herbivorous insects and their host plants Biol. Rev. 70 639–694
P.E. Hatcher (1997) Indirect interactions between insect herbivores and pathogenic fungi on leaves A.C. Gange V.K. Brown (Eds) , Multitrophic Interactions in Terrestrial Systems. Blackwell London, UK 133–149
L.R. Milbrath J.R. Nechols (2004) ArticleTitleIndividual and combined effects of Trichosirocalus horridus and Rhinocyllus conicus (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) on musk thistle Biol. Control 30 418–429
P.J. Moran (2004) Plant mediated interactions between Neochetina s weevils and the fungal pathogen Cercospora piaropi on waterhyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes) J.M. Cullen D.T. Briese D.J. Kriticos W.M. Lonsdale L. Morain J.K. Scott (Eds) Proceedings of the XI International Symposium on Biological Control of Weeds.28 April–2 May 2003 CSIRO Entomology Canberra, Australia 430–435
H. Muller-Scharer P.C. Scheepens M.P. Greaves (2000) ArticleTitleBiological control of weeds in European crops: recent achievements and future work Weed Res. 40 83–98
T.D. Paine R.F. Raffa T.C. Harrington (1997) ArticleTitleInteractions among scolytid bark beetles, their associated fungi, and live host conifers Annu. Rev. Entomol. 42 179–206 Occurrence Handle15012312 Occurrence Handle1:CAS:528:DyaK2sXjvFSlsw%3D%3D
D.R. Sanders R.F. Theriot E.A. Theriot (1982) ArticleTitleOrganisms impacting waterhyacinth in the Panama Canal J. Aquatic Plant Mgmt 20 22–29
SAS Institute, 1999. SAS/STAT User’s Guide, Version 8. SAS Institute, Cary, North Carolina
P. Syrett D.T. Briese J.H. Hoffmann (2000) Success in biological control of terrestrial weeds by arthropods G. Gurr S. Wratten (Eds) , Biological Control: Measures of Success. Kluwer Academic Publishers Dordrecht, The Netherlands 189–230
N.K. Zidack (1999) Implications of induced resistance to pathogens and herbivores for biological weed control A.A. Agrawal S. Tuzun E. Bent (Eds) Induced Plant Defenses Against Pathogens and Herbivores American Phytopathological Society, St. Paul Minnesota. 371–378
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Moran, P.J. Leaf scarring by the weevils Neochetina eichhorniae and N. bruchi enhances infection by the fungus Cercospora piaropi on waterhyacinth, Eichhornia crassipes . Biocontrol 50, 511–524 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10526-004-4254-y
Received:
Revised:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10526-004-4254-y