Abstract
The emerald ash borer, Agrilus planipennis, is a serious invasive pest of North American ash (Fraxinus) trees. In captivity, mating is initiated by beetles at least 10 days old, and appears to be based simply on random contact with a member of the opposite sex. In the field, male A. planipennis search the tree during flight, and attempt to copulate with dead beetles of both sexes pinned to leaves, after descending rapidly straight down onto the pinned beetles from a height of from 30 to 100 cm. All evidence suggests that males find potential mates using visual cues. Equal numbers of feral males approach all ‘dummy’ beetles; however, considerably more time is spent attempting copulation with dead females rather than males, suggesting a contact chemical cue. Sticky traps prepared from dead, pinned EAB capture crawling insects as well as male A. planipennis, at a rate similar to that at which small purple sticky traps of similar overall area capture crawling insects and both sexes of feral EAB.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Cappaert D, McCullough DG, Poland TM, Siegert NW (2005) Emerald ash borer in North America: a research and regulatory challenge. Am Entomol 51:152–165
Carlson RW, Knight FB (1969) Biology, taxonomy, and evolution of four sympatric Agrilus beetles (Coleoptera: Buprestidae). Contrib Am Entomol Inst 4:1–105
Crook D, Khrimian A, Francese J, Fraser I, Poland T, Mastro V (2006) Chemical ecology of emerald ash borer. In: Mastro VC, Lance D, Reardon R, Parra G (eds) Emerald ash borer and Asian longhorned beetle research and technology development meeting, FHTET 2007-04, USDA Forest Service, Morgantown, WV, p 79
Francese JA, Mastro VC, Oliver JB, Lance DR, Youssef N, Lavallee SG (2005) Evaluation of colors for trapping Agrilus planipennis (Coleoptera: Buprestidae). J Entomol Sci 40:93–95
Francese JA, Fraser I, Lance DR, Mastro VC (2006) Developing survey techniques for emerald ash borer: the role of trap height and design. In: Mastro VC, Lance D, Reardon R, Parra G (eds) Emerald ash borer and Asian longhorned beetle research and technology development meeting, FHTET 2007-04, USDA Forest Service, Morgantown, WV, p 72
Gwynne DT, Rentz DCF (1983) Beetles on the bottle: male buprestids mistake stubbies for females (Coleoptera). J Aust Entomol Soc 23:79–80
Haack RA, Jendek E, Liu H, Marchant KR, Petrice TR, Poland TM, Ye H (2002) The Emerald ash borer: a new exotic pest in North America. Newsletter of the Michigan Entomological Society 47:1–5
Lance DR, Fraser I, Mastro VC (2006) Activity and microhabitat-selection patterns for emerald ash borer and their implications for the development of trapping systems. In: Mastro VC, Lance D, Reardon R, Parra G (eds) Emerald ash borer and Asian longhorned beetle research and technology development meeting, FHTET 2007-04, USDA Forest Service, Morgantown, WV, p 77
Matthews RW, Matthews JR (1978) Insect Behavior. Wiley, New York
Metzger JA, Fraser I, Storer AJ, Crook DJ, Francese JA, Mastro VC (2006) A multistate comparison of emerald ash borer (Agrilus planipennis Fairmaire) (Coleoptera: Buprestidae) detection tools. In: Mastro VC, Lance D, Reardon R, Parra G (eds) Emerald ash borer and Asian longhorned beetle research and technology development meeting, FHTET 2007-04, USDA Forest Service, Morgantown, WV, p 73
Otis GW, Youngs ME, Umphrey G (2005) Effects of colored objects and purple background on emerald ash borer trapping. In: Mastro V, Reardon R (eds) Emerald ash borer research and technology development meeting, FHTET-2004-15, USDA Forest Service, Morgantown, WV, pp 31–32
Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. Emerald Ash Borer. Available online at http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us/forestry/fpm_invasives_EAB.aspx; last accessed on July 5, 2007
Poland TM, McCullough DG (2006) Emerald ash borer: invasion of the urban forest and the threat to North America’s ash resource. J Forestry 104:118–124
Siegert NW, McCullough DG, Liebhold AM, Telewski FW (2005) Reconstructing the temporal and spatial dynamics of emerald ash borer in black ash: a case study of an outlier site in Roscommon County, Michigan. In: Mastro V, Reardon R (eds) Emerald ash borer research and technology development meeting, FHTET-2004-15, USDA Forest Service, Morgantown, WV, pp 21–22
Acknowledgements
This study was supported by Cooperative Agreement Number 06-8100-1091-CA between the USDA-APHIS-PPQ and the Pennsylvania State University. The authors would like to thank David Lance for his invaluable assistance and for his willingness to share his thoughts and observations. In addition, many thanks must be extended to the technicians and staff of the Brighton, Michigan USDA-APHIS-PPQ office.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Lelito, J.P., Fraser, I., Mastro, V.C. et al. Visually Mediated ‘Paratrooper Copulations’ in the Mating Behavior of Agrilus planipennis (Coleoptera: Buprestidae), a Highly Destructive Invasive Pest of North American Ash Trees. J Insect Behav 20, 537–552 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10905-007-9097-9
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10905-007-9097-9