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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Poplarville, Mississippi » Southern Horticultural Research Unit » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #272955
Title: Diversity abundance and seasonality of ambrosia beetles (Coleoptera: curculionida) in Southern Mississippi

Author
item Werle, Christopher
item Sampson, Blair
item OLIVER, JASON - Tennessee State University

Submitted to: Midsouth Entomologist
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 9/8/2011
Publication Date: 3/1/2012
Citation: Werle, C.T., Sampson, B.J., Oliver, J.B. 2012. Diversity abundance and seasonality of ambrosia beetles (Coleoptera: curculionida) in Southern Mississippi. Midsouth Entomologist. 5:1-5.

Interpretive Summary: Replicated insect surveys in 2010 indicated that the granulate ambrosia beetle was the most abundant wood-boring species in southern Mississippi. The camphor shot borer, a destructive invader that can kill healthy live trees, was of particular interest and it was confirmed that this destructive tree pest occurs in the southern region of the State, but as of now, in very low abundance. The black twig borer was another abundant tree pest, which appears confined to the lower Coastal Plain of the southern U.S.

Technical Abstract: A survey was undertaken in 2010 to assess the makeup of the ambrosia beetle (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) community at two research sites in South Mississippi. Inexpensive beetle traps were constructed and fitted with ethanol lures, with bi-weekly collections made from March through November. The granulate ambrosia beetle [Xylosandrus crassiusculus (Motschulsky)] was the most abundant xyleborine species at both sites, with more specimens collected in Poplarville than McNeill. Other species were more abundant in McNeill. The camphor shot borer [Xylosandrus mutilatus (Blandford)] was collected in relatively low numbers at both sites. The black twig borer [Xylosandrus compactus (Eichhoff)] was the second most-abundant species in MS, yet has not been reported from collections by collaborators in OH, VA or TN. The black stem borer [Xylosandrus germanus (Blandford)] is commonly collected by our collaborators, but none were collected from either of our research sites in South MS.