Joseph E. Eger

Discovery and distribution of Megacopta cribraria (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Plataspidae) in northeast Georgia

In October 2009, large aggregations of Megacopta cribraria (F.) (Heteroptera: Plataspidae) were discovered on outside, perimeter walls of houses in northeast Georgia, prompting homeowners to contact county Extension agents and pest management professionals to learn more about the insect and to rid the premises of the nuisance. The insect was flying from nearby patches of kudzu ( Pueraria spp .) onto houses, presumably in an attempt to locate overwintering sites. In its native Asia, one of its preferred hosts is kudzu, an invasive, leguminous vine that now grows throughout the southeastern U.S. Before discovery in Georgia, M. cribraria was unknown from the New World. In addition to its emergence as a nuisance pest, M. cribraria has been reported as a pest of numerous legume crops in Asia, including soybean, Glycine max Merrill . As of August 9, 2010, M. cribraria was known from 48 counties in northeast Georgia and 13 counties in northwest South Carolina. In late June and early July 2010, M. cribraria was found on soybeans in 20 of the 48 Georgia counties and five counties in South Carolina.

Confirmed Distribution and Occurrence of Megacopta cribraria (F.) (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Plataspidae) in the Southeastern United States

Abstract Megacopta cribraria (F) (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Plataspidae) was first discovered in North America in 9 counties in northeastern Georgia (USA) in October 2009. By the end of 2012, surveys conducted in Georgia and neighboring states confirmed that the insect had spread into 383 additional counties in the southeastern U.S., including the states of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia. It was reported from 33 species of plants representing 15 taxonomic families in these surveys, with 17 of those from the family Fabaceae (legumes). Kudzu (Pueraria montana Lour. [Merr.] variety lobata [Willd.] Maesen & S. Almeida) was the most frequently reported host. All life stages of the insect were observed only on kudzu and soybean (Glycine max [L.] Merrill) which, to date, are the only confirmed reproductive host plants of M. cribraria in its expanded North American range.

Preliminary Genetic Analysis of a Recently-Discovered Invasive True Bug (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Plataspidae) and Its Bacterial Endosymbiont in Georgia, USA

A true bug (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Plataspidae), previously known only in the Old World from India and Pakistan to China, Korea, Japan and Malaysia to Australia, was discovered in mid-October 2009 in several northeastern counties in Georgia (USA). Specimens of the stinkbug were submitted by professional pest control operators and county agents following homeowner complaints of the large number of insects migrating from kudzu killed by recent frosts. The insect was identifi ed using morphological characters as the bean plataspid, Megacopta cribraria (F.) (Hemiptera: Plataspidae), by J.E. Eger, Jr. (Dow AgroSciences, Tampa, FL). The identifi cation was confi rmed by entomologists at North Dakota State University and the USDA-ARS Systematics Laboratory (Washington, DC). Genomic DNA was extracted using methods of Jenkins et al. (2009, Ann. Entomol. Soc. Am. 102: 380 395) from 3 specimens collected in northeast Georgia. The cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) gene fragment was then a mplified and sequenced according to Jenkins et al. (2009). The COI s equences from all 3 specimens were identical, indicating a single female line age. When these sequences were subjected to a GenBank Blast search (Altschul et al.1990. J. Mol. Evol. 215: 403 410), M. cribraria (GenBank # AY627332) was the closest match (11 base differences out of 789 total bases or 98.6% identity). A γ-Proteobacterium, Candidatus Ishikawaella capsulata (Hosokawa et al. 2006. PLOS Biol. 4: e337. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.0040337), reportedly lives in the posterior midgut of plataspid stinkbugs and appears to be necessary for normal growth and development. It also has been implicated in increased fecundity (Fukatsu and H osokawa. 2002, Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 68: 389 396). The female bean plataspid,

THE AFRICAN CLUSTER BUG, AGONOSCELIS PUBERULA (HETEROPTERA: PENTATOMIDAE), ESTABLISHED IN THE NEW WORLD

Abstract An African species of Pentatomidae, Agonoscelis puberula Stål, is reported for the first time from Mexico, the southern United States and the islands of Jamaica and Hispaniola, where it has now established. The oldest Western Hemisphere record dates from 1985. This species has gone unrecognized probably because of its close resemblance to species of the New World genus Trichopepla Stål. The primary host plant of A. puberula is the introduced weed, common horehound, Marrubium vulgare L. It has also been reported damaging winter fruits in South Africa.

Shield Bugs (Scutelleridae)

Scutelleridae Leach includes three subfamilies, 25 genera, and almost 100 species in the Neotropics. Both subfamilies Scutellerinae and Elvisurinae are represented by a single genus, and Pachycorinae contains the majority of the species. Neotropical shield bugs are usually dull colored, but polymorphisms and sexual dimorphisms have caused a considerable confusion in their taxonomy. Several genera need revision, and many new taxa are awaiting formal descriptions. Biological and ecological data are scarce, with a few species reported as minor pests.

Heteroptera attracted to butterfly traps baited with fish or shrimp carrion

Abstract Records of Heteroptera collected at butterfly traps baited with fish or shrimp carrion during collecting trips to Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru are presented. Traps consisted of a cylinder of net fabric (about 35 cm diameter × 75 cm length) attached on the top and bottom to square pieces of wood slightly larger than the diameter of the cylinder. The bait usually consisted of locally available fish or shrimp that were cut into small pieces and placed in a container with water and a little soil and allowed to putrefy for several days to a week or more before use. The Heteroptera collected consisted of 91 species and 1,712 specimens in the following families: Alydidae, Coreidae, Cyrtocoridae, Lygaeidae, Miridae, Pentatomidae, Reduviidae, Rhopalidae, Rhyparochromidae, and Scutelleridae. We collected 1,356 males and 356 females at these traps, but most of the sex bias occurred in the Scutelleridae. Although sex bias was variable by family, a bias towards females generally occurred except for the Scutelleridae. Most of the species collected at these traps were not collected at the location using other collecting methods, so collecting at butterfly traps increased the number of taxa obtained at each location. Butterfly traps baited with fish or shrimp carrion should be considered as an additional collecting tool for biodiversity studies or general collecting.

Phylogeny and the colourful history of jewel bugs (Insecta: Hemiptera: Scutelleridae)

Members of the family Scutelleridae (Heteroptera: Pentatomomorpha: Pentatomoidea) are also called shield bugs because of the greatly enlarged scutellum, or jewel bugs because of the brilliant colours of many species. All scutellerids are phytophagous, feeding on various parts of their host plants. Due to lack of obvious synapomorphies and the failure to apply rigorous phylogenetic methods, the higher classification of Scutelleridae has been disputed for more than 150 years. Here we reconstructed a phylogeny of Scutelleridae based on complete sequences of 18S and 28S nuclear rDNAs and all 13 protein‐coding genes of the mitochondrial genome, with the sampled taxa covering all of the currently recognized subfamilies. The monophyly of Scutelleridae was confirmed by the congruence of the results of analyses conducted using Bayesian inference, maximum likelihood and maximum parsimony. The phylogenetic relationships among subfamilies were well resolved for the first time. Furthermore, time‐divergence studies estimated that the time of origin of Scutelleridae was in the Early Cretaceous (142.1–122.8 Ma), after the origin of the angiosperms. The diversification between the extant subfamilies of Scutelleridae and within the subfamilies occurred from the late Palaeocene to the late Miocene, simultaneously with the rise of the major groups of angiosperms and other phytophagous insects.

New species of Euschistus (Euschistus) from Jamaica, Euschistus (Mitripus) and Ladeaschistus from southern South America (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Pentatomidae: Pentatominae).

Three new species of the Carpocorini are described: Euschistus (Euschistus) baranowskii Eger & Bianchi sp. nov. from Jamaica, Euschistus (Mitripus) saramagoi Bianchi, Cioato & Grazia sp. nov. from Brazil, and Ladeaschistus borgesi Bianchi, Cioato & Grazia sp. nov. from Argentina, Bolivia and Brazil. Comparative illustrations of external and internal genitalia of the species are provided.