Biology and Control of the Western Poplar Clearwing Moth, Paranthrene Robiniae (Hy
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BIOLOGY AND CONTROL OF THE WESTERN POPLAR CLEARWING MOTH, PARANTHRENE ROBINIAE (HY. EDWARDS), IN HYBRID POPLARS. By NEAL THOMAS KITTELSON This dissertation is submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy WASHINGTON STATE UNIVERSITY Department of Entomology December 2006 Acknowledgements First and foremost I would like to thank my major advisor, Dr. John J. Brown, who has been extremely involved and indispensable in every aspect of my project. I would also like to acknowledge the members of the research committee Dr. Douglas B. Walsh, Dr. William E. Snyder, and Dr. Jay F. Brunner, who have lent their expertise, advice and criticism throughout my research and for this dissertation. I would also like to extend my appreciation to Eugene R. Hannon, who has been there for me for all four years of this project, helping with fieldwork, discussing research and being a friend on our summers spent in Boardman OR. I would also like to thank R. Andrew Rodstrom, who came into our lab and continued taking the data for me in spite of his immense workload for his own project. This project would not have been realized without the help of John Finley (Potlatch Corp.), Alan Kottwitz (Boise) and Brian Stanton (GreenWood Resources) who have all put time and effort into helping my project succeed and for that I would like to thank them. I would also like to thank John and Lynn Prag, who welcomed me into their home and welcomed me to Oregon the first summer of my project. Many people provided technical support, throughout the years and I list them alphabetically behind their affiliation. Lastly, this project could not have come to completion if it was not for the funding sources, mentioned behind that heading. WSU: Holly Boob, Dr. Marc Evans, Holly Ferguson, Aaron Hayes, Felicia Merritt, Levi Morris, Amanda Snyder, Rebecca Thompson, Dr. William Turner, and Tim Waters. iii Potlatch: Donna Acock, Grant Beauchamp, Andrew Borque, Jake Eaton, John Finley, Kurt Gantenbein, and Luke Maynard. GreenWood Resources: Mike Berk, Cory Boswell, Brian Stanton, and Donna Townsend. Boise: Alan Kottwitz, Gary Martinez, and Dr. Peggy Payne. Suterra LLC: Joan Fisher, Tom Larsen, and Kristen Ketner. Perkins Specialty Spraying and Consulting: Earl Perkins. Funding: Potlatch, GreenWood Resources, & Boise Corporations; IR-4 Project; Washington State Commission on Pesticide Registration; Western Regional IPM iv BIOLOGY AND CONTROL OF THE WESTERN POPLAR CLEARWING MOTH, PARANTHRENE ROBINIAE (HY. EDWARDS), IN HYBRID POPLARS. Abstract: By Neal Thomas Kittelson, Ph.D. Washington State University December 2006 Chair: John J Brown Western poplar clearwing moths [Paranthrene robiniae (Hy. Edwards)] are endemic in Pacific Northwest riparian habitats at low population densities. These moths have colonized commercial hybrid poplar plantings where larvae damage the poplar trees by boring into the trunks. In newly planted poplars a single P. robiniae larva can cause tree mortality. Prior to the introduction of agroforestry into eastern Washington and Oregon Paranthrene robiniae (Hy. Edwards) was not considered a pest of economic importance. In 2002, there was an outbreak of P. robiniae, documented with pheromone baited trap catches increasing 190-fold from those of 2001. Chlorpyrifos applications failed to reduce P. robiniae populations. Investigatory research started in August 2002, to see if a pheromone control strategy would be feasible. In this preliminary study we found that we were able to shut down trap capture of P. robiniae in 0.4 ha plots by attaching pheromone lures to every other tree. We began a pheromone control strategy in 2003, but because of difficulties in acquiring adequate pheromone, and late applications, we were unable to show a reduction in damage to first and second yr trees. We continued our pheromone control strategy in 2004 with adequate pheromone to cover entire farms and applied the pheromone before P. robiniae began their flight season. With that approach, we were able to show a v reduction in damage to first and second yr trees. With sustained use of this pheromone control strategy we have continued to document reductions in damage. With persistent pheromone saturation, trap capture of P. robiniae was shut down to the point where weekly counts of the monitoring traps did not provide an adequate way to monitor P. robiniae populations, and thus infield pheromone levels. Nemapogon variatella (Clemens), a fungus moth, is attracted to the same pheromone as P. robiniae. However, we have no evidence to show that N. variatella populations have been affected by our pheromone control strategy. By monitoring N. variatella in monitoring traps baited with P. robiniae pheromone, we can use N. variatella as a “canary” species and monitor ambient in field pheromone levels in the absence of P. robiniae. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS ............................................................................................Page ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS............................................................................................... iii ABSTRACT.........................................................................................................................v TABLE OF CONTENTS.................................................................................................. vii LIST OF TABLES............................................................................................................xvi LIST OF FIGURES .......................................................................................................xviiii DEDICATION..............................................................................................................xxviii CHAPTER 1: Introduction to Paranthrene robiniae (Hy. Edwards), the western poplar clearwing moth.....................................................................................................................1 Current classification ...............................................................................................2 General biology........................................................................................................3 Biological Control....................................................................................................3 Literature specific to P. robiniae .............................................................................4 Literature on sessid pests .........................................................................................4 LITERATURE CITED ........................................................................................................9 FIGURES...........................................................................................................................25 CHAPTER 2: Biology of the western poplar clearwing moth [Lepidoptera: Sesiidae], Paranthrene robiniae.........................................................................................................29 ABSTRACT...........................................................................................................30 INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................31 MATERIALS AND METHODS...........................................................................32 Terminology...............................................................................................32 Color traps..................................................................................................33 vii 2002.............................................................................................33 2003.............................................................................................33 Dispersal away from host plant..................................................................35 Height of male mating flight......................................................................35 Clonal variation..........................................................................................35 Life history.................................................................................................36 Phenology ...................................................................................36 Riparian populations ..................................................................37 Sex determination of pupae.........................................................37 Wild female collection...............................................................................38 Rearing attempt...........................................................................38 Salt trap ......................................................................................................38 Statistical analysis......................................................................................39 RESULTS ..............................................................................................................40 Color traps..................................................................................................40 2002.............................................................................................40 2003.............................................................................................40 Dispersal away from host plant..................................................................42 Height of male mating flight......................................................................42 Clonal variation..........................................................................................43