Abstract
Invasive species are generally detected in new ecosystems long after their first arrival, making it difficult to elucidate pathways leading to successful invasion. In this study, the dispersal of a classical biological control agent, the mymarid egg parasitoid Gonatocerus ashmeadi, was monitored across ten islands in three major island groups in French Polynesia from the exact moment of its introduction into Tahiti to combat the invasive pest Homalodisca vitripennis. Within 10 months, the parasitoid spread quickly from Tahiti to widely separated islands (up to 1,400 km from Tahiti); presumably through the transportation of plant material containing parasitized H. vitripennis eggs. Gonatocerus ashmeadi thus functioned as a “biomarker”, providing an informal audit of the effectiveness of inter-island quarantine measures designed to curb the accidental spread of noxious organisms. Survey results suggest that invasive organisms, like deliberately released biological control agents, can be unintentionally and rapidly transmitted across vast distances by humans. Furthermore, even remote islands appear to experience relentless pressure from invasive propagules associated with human travel. Implications of survey work documenting the spread and impact of G. ashmeadi are discussed within the context of biological control programs, non-target impacts, and biosecurity initiatives.
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Acknowledgments
We thank the director of the Service du Développement Rural for providing technical and strategic support on this program. We thank Dr. Charles Garnier, Leopold Stein and Rudolph Putoa for their helpful assistance in organizing the program, and the technicians in charge of the insect rearing: Suzanne Liloi, William Ellacott, René Tupana and Joseph Mamatui. Financial support for research on H. vitripennis has been provided by the French Polynesian Government (Convention no 4.0328). Additional support has come from the University of California at Riverside and Berkeley and the University of California, Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources, the California Department of Food and Agriculture, and the Secretariat of the Pacific Community. This paper is contribution #164 of the UC Berkeley Richard B. Gump South Pacific Research Station.
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Petit, J.N., Hoddle, M.S., Grandgirard, J. et al. Successful spread of a biocontrol agent reveals a biosecurity failure: elucidating long distance invasion pathways for Gonatocerus ashmeadi in French Polynesia. BioControl 54, 485–495 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10526-008-9204-7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10526-008-9204-7