 The brown marmorated stink bug (Halyomorpha halys, BMSB) is different from other new pests. Normally when a new pest problem occurs, we only hear about it within entomology or industry circles. With the brown marmorated stink bug we are dealing with a celebrity. This pest has made headlines in major newspapers and TV.BMSB has been a sleeping giant just waiting for the right conditions to allow its numbers to take off. First reported in the Lehigh Valley of Pennsylvania in 1998, it was thought not to be of any major economic importance. Then it started invading residences and businesses. This unwanted invader was then deemed a nuisance pest, but still not a lot of focus was put on it. In 2009, commercial peach and apple growers began to notice some damage from BMSB, and by 2010 it was affecting several more crops and had also moved into new states. It’s not just a tree problem—it’s attacking greenhouse crops, too. Threat to ornamentals  Not all stink bugs are bad. This predatory stinkbug is eating a caterpillar.The damage BMSB causes in fruits and vegetables is quite obvious, and has resulted in economic losses for growers. It appears that fruits and vegetables were not enough to satisfy the appetite of this pest, and it is now moving onto ornamental plants. For ornamental horticulture crops it is not known yet whether BMSB will cause significant economic loss. BMSB feeds on more than 56 genera and more than 80 plant species.  Look for the bands on the antennae to identify a brown marmorated stink bug.Identifying BMSB BMSB adults look very similar to other stink bug species. The easiest way to tell them apart is to look at their antennae. They have banded antennae where most others have solid colored ones. Their bodies are brown and have the classic shield shape. They have piercing, sucking mouth parts that poke into the plants to feed. When disturbed or squashed, they emit a foul-smelling odor. BMSB specifics Similar to native stink bugs, BMSB overwinters as an adult and seeks harborages in cracks and crevices in the fall. These protected areas can be natural such as tree bark, or artificial such as in and around buildings. Because of the large numbers of BMSB invading residential and commercial buildings, the owners have taken notice and will try almost anything to remedy the problem. Unfortunately, there is not much that can be done once the BMSB is inside. There are light traps to help trap the adults, but they will not keep them out. In spring, the adults will start returning back outside or come out of their hiding places. They will mate and lay eggs through the summer months. The eggs are laid in groups of 20-30. When they first hatch they are black and look similar to ticks. After their fist molt, these stink bugs start to take on more of the classic stink bug look. After five molts, they’re adults.   This immature brown marmorated stink bug is feeding on a hibiscus plant.Control options Research continues to show that biological control is going to be the long-term strategy to control BMSB. So far, U.S. native beneficials have not significantly controlled its populations. USDA researchers have identified four parasitic wasps in the genus Trissolcus from China that lay their eggs in BMSB eggs. During the next two years, these wasps will be evaluated for their effectiveness in quarantine facilities in Delaware. Until evaluations on the parasitic wasps are complete, insecticides are growers’ only option. Fortunately, ornamental plant growers have a few more options than fruit tree growers. On the down side, BMSB can be hard to kill. Many of the products that provide control can be highly toxic to beneficial insects, interrupting ongoing pest management programs.  Research resultsTracey Laskey and a team of researchers at the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service in Kearneysville, W.V., treated glass surfaces using intermediate to high label rates of insecticides, allowed them to dry for 18 hours, placed 30 BMSBs on treated surfaces and then followed their fate for seven days. They assessed whether BMSBs were alive, moribund (point of death) or dead initially, and then assessed longer-term effects. This information was converted into a lethality index (0 to 100). Associate professor Thomas Kuhar and colleagues at Virginia Tech, dipped filter paper and a single green bean pod in insecticide solutions based on label rates delivered in 100 gallons per acre. The treatments were allowed to dry for about half an hour before BMSB adults or nymphs were exposed to them in Petri dishes. Percent mortality and morbidity were assessed 72 hours later. The products and active ingredients which gave a lethality index of greater than 85 or exhibited 85 percent mortality or higher included acephate, acetamiprid, bifenthrin, chlorpyrifos, cypermethrin, dimethoate, endosulfan, malathion, methidation, methomyl, permethrin and combinations of pyrethroids and neonicotinoids. However, two neonicotinoids exhibited higher mortality in Wuhar’s assessment than in Laskey’s. Although Kuhar’s methodology assessed impacts at 72 hours instead of through one week, BMSBs were able to feed on a treated food source. Acetamiprid and dinotefuron may be good candidates to include in field efficacy experiments. Trapping BMSB is another tool currently being researched. Specially-designed traps have been baited with the aggregation pheromone of the Asian brown-winged green bug, Plautia stali. BMSB is attracted to this compound. The traps are available from AgBio Inc. IR-4 will be sponsoring several BMSB research projects in the Northeast. University of Maryland Cooperative Extension will continue to research the effects of this pest on ornamental horticulture production. Get more information. Suzanne Wainright-Evans is owner of Buglady Consulting, (610) 767-9221; info@BugladyConsulting.com; www.bugladyconsulting.com. Cristi Palmer is Ornamental Horticulture Program Manager, IR-4 Project Headquarters, Rutgers University, (732) 932-9575 Ext. 4629; palmer@aesop.rutgers.edu; http://ir4.rutgers.edu. |
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