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Reproduction and dispersal of wing-clipped predatory stinkbugs, Podisus nigrispinus in cotton fields

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Abstract

Release of arthropod predators holds promise for suppressing herbivorous insect populations in commercial crops below economic threshold levels, but dispersal from release sites remains a practical issue that can limit their impact. This study examined mating behavior, survival, reproduction, and dispersion of membranous wing-clipped and wing-intact adults of the predatory stinkbug Podisus nigrispinus (Dallas) (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae), a generalist predator of cotton pests in South America. After laboratory studies demonstrated that wing-clipping did not alter mating behavior or reproductive output, field studies were conducted in experimental plots. In each experiment, 50 mated females (5–10 days old) were released at a central point. After 24, 48, 72, and 96 h, dispersion was measured via drop-cloth samples at distances up to 16 m from the release point. After 96 h, plants on each survey and release point were collected and, in the laboratory, they were inspected for egg masses. During the first 24 to 48 h after release, predators from both groups disappeared, but recovery of the wing-clipped predators was significantly greater (38.6% for wing-clipped and 17.3% for wing-intact predators) in all three releases. Importantly, oviposition rates on the release site were about three times greater for wing-clipped females (0.07 vs. 0.02 egg masses per plant), indicating that limiting flight induces females to stay and lay their eggs, hence, allowing local establishment of a new generation of predators.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Janice Matthews and Robert Matthews (UGA-Athens) for helpful suggestions on the manuscript as well as two anonymous reviewers and the associate editor of Biocontrol for valuable corrections and suggestions; Mario Castro for allowing us to use his land to grow field plots (Aldeia, PE), and Joel Strobel (Rondonópolis, MT) for allowing us to use his commercial fields. R.C.S.N. was funded by PIBIC/CNPq/UFRPE from August 2005 to August 2007. This research was supported in part by FACEPE/MCT/CNPq/CT-INFRA APQ-0157-5.01/06.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Universidade Federal Rural de Pernambuco, Recife, PE, Brazil

    Robério C. S. Neves & Jorge B. Torres

  2. Fundação Mato Grosso, Rondonopolis, MT, Brazil

    Lucia M. Vivan

Authors
  1. Robério C. S. Neves
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  2. Jorge B. Torres
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  3. Lucia M. Vivan
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Correspondence to Jorge B. Torres.

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This research is part of a larger project looking for improvement of natural predators into sustainable pest management conducted by the biological control and insect ecology laboratory (lead by Jorge B. Torres) of the “Universidade Federal Rural de Pernambuco (UFRPE) at Recife, PE, Brazil.

Handling Editor: Patrick De Clercq

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Neves, R.C.S., Torres, J.B. & Vivan, L.M. Reproduction and dispersal of wing-clipped predatory stinkbugs, Podisus nigrispinus in cotton fields. BioControl 54, 9–17 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10526-008-9150-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10526-008-9150-4

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