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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Tifton, Georgia » Southeast Watershed Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #388428
Research Project: Biologically-based Management Systems for Insect Pests and Pollinators in Agricultural Landscapes in the Southeastern Region

Location: Southeast Watershed Research

Title: Spatiotemporal distribution of Halyomorpha halys (Stål)(Hemiptera:Pentatomidae) across a fruit and tree nut agricultural ecosystem

Author
item Grabarczyk, Erin
item Cottrell, Ted
item Tillman, Patricia - Glynn

Submitted to: Environmental Entomology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 3/20/2022
Publication Date: 5/29/2022
Citation: Grabarczyk, E.E., Cottrell, T.E., Tillman, P.G. 2022. Spatiotemporal distribution of Halyomorpha halys (Stål)(Hemiptera:Pentatomidae) across a fruit and tree nut agricultural ecosystem. Environmental Entomology. https://doi.org/10.1093/ee/nvac030.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/ee/nvac030

Interpretive Summary: The brown marmorated stink bug is an invasive pest of orchards in Georgia, USA. But the likelihood of damage to peaches and pecans may depend on nearby habitat as well as the time of year that fruits ripen. Brown marmorated stink bugs were often captured near unmanaged peach trees, woodlands, and fallow fields. In orchards, most stink bugs were found when tree fruits and nuts were ripe. For growers, this means stink bug control may need to take place in the habitats that surround orchard trees.

Technical Abstract: The invasive brown marmorated stink bug, Halyomorpha halys (Stål) (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) is a mobile, polyphagous agricultural pest that feeds on and reproduces in a variety of plants. In orchard systems, understanding the timing and distribution of adults and nymphs between fruit and nut trees and the surrounding habitat is important for development of targeted pest management strategies. Here, we explored the spatiotemporal distribution of H. halys adults and nymphs and assessed whether seasonal distribution patterns varied according to habitat. Stink bugs were monitored weekly for two years within a grid of pheromone-baited traps. We used Spatial Analysis by Distance Indices (SADIE) to identify clusters and visualized significant aggregations with interpolated maps. Overall, the distribution of H. halys adults and nymphs was similar; both aggregated primarily in managed and unmanaged peach as well as pecan, woodlands, and fallow fields. The timing of aggregations was consistent across years and reached highest levels in July and August, when fruits and nuts were available on trees. To manage H. halys in southeastern orchard systems, growers may need to account for movement in habitats that surround fruiting trees.