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Entomological Society of America Proposal Form for new Common Name or Change of ESA-Approved Common Name

Complete this form and e-mail to [email protected]. Submissions will not be considered unless this form is filled out completely.

The proposer is expected to be familiar with the rules, recommendations, and procedures outlined in the “Use and Submission of Common Names” on the ESA website and with the discussion by A.B. Gurney, 1953, Journal of Economic Entomology 46:207-211.

1. Proposed new common name: kudzu bug

2. Previously approved common name (if any): No official ESA common name at this time.

3. Scientific name (genus, species, author): Megacopta cribraria (Fabricius)

Order:

Family:

Supporting Information

4. Reasons supporting the need for the proposed common name: Megacopta cribraria, a bug from Asia that feeds on kudzu, was taxonomically confirmed as a new arrival to the United Sates in 2009 where it was discovered amassing on some homes (Eger, et al. 2010). Subsequent genetic studies confirmed this taxonomic identification (Jenkins, et al. 2010). Within a few weeks of its discovery, populations had been confirmed in 9 Georgia counties, and within less than a year, the bug had been found in over 48 Georgia counties and 5 South Carolina counties (Suiter et al 2010). Since that publication, the distribution has grown to include almost every county in Georgia, Alabama, North Carolina and south Carolina and has been confirmed in at least 13 states (Wayne Gardner, personal communication and updated map online - see references Gardner, W. G. 2014).

In addition to kudzu, the bug in its native range has been shown to feed on various legume plants (Eger, et al. 2010) and the bug has already been found on various legumes in Georgia including soybeans where it has been found sometimes in large numbers (Suiter et. al, 2010 and Phillip Roberts, personal communication). Due to this development, it is likely that there will be subsequent studies to determine the economic impact of this potential new pest. In addition, M. cribraria’s habit of amassing on homes in large numbers in fall means that it has the potential to become a nuisance for members of the general public. A common name for the species will facilitate communications amongst the scientific community and the general public as new information is found concerning the bug.

(Full references at end of proposal)

5. Stage or characteristic to which the proposed common name refers: All stages: egg, nymph, adult.

6. Distribution (include references): At present M. cribraria has been found in approximately 13 states throughout the south. It ranges from Delaware to Florida and as far west as Louisiana. Gardner, W. G. 2014.

7. Principal hosts (include references): Kudzu and various legumes. Eger et al. 2010 contains a review of the principal hosts and the scientific documentation for the hosts. The main hosts of note are: kudzu, Pueraria montana var. lobata (Willd.) Ohwi (multiple references, including Ishihara 1950), soybean, Glycine max Merril (multiple references, including Ishihara 1950), pigeon pea, Cajanus indicus Spreng. (multiple references, including Hoffmann 1932), lima bean, Phaseolus lunatus L. (Hoffmann 1932), and kidney bean, Phaseolus vulgaris L. (Easton and Pun 1997 and Ishihara 1950). Also, although it does not do as well, Srinivasaperumal et al. (1992) reported that M. cribraria was able to complete development and reproduce using cotton, Gossypium hirsutum L. as a host.

As of October 2010, M. cribraria had been found on soybean in over 20 counties in Georgia (Wayne Gardner, personal communication 2010)

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8. References containing previous use of the proposed common name: A current search on Google using the search term “kudzu bug” gives a hit count of about 27,000 results which is higher than even the names which had been used previously in other areas of the world. Of the other potential common names for Megacopta cribraria, the next closest was “Bean plataspid” with a hit count of approximately 16,500 with “Globular Stink bug (10,900 hits) and “Lablab bug” (2,510 hits) being less popular.

The name kudzu bug can also now be found in use in scientific literature. “Kudzu bug” and “Bean plataspid” return 45 and 44 results respectively in Google Scholar both covering a wide range of scientific articles. While generally both Kudzu bug and Bean plataspid are mentioned as potential common names in this scientific literature, Kudzu bug is the only common name used in a Science article on the influence of symbiotic bacteria on behavior (Ezenwa, et al. 2012). Some other examples of Kudzu bug being used can be found in Environmental Entomology Zhang, et al. 2011), Applied Entomology and Zoology (Ruberson, et al. 2012) and Journal of Entomological Science (Gardner, et al. 2013).

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9. References using common names (give names) other than that proposed: Megacopta cribraria is known by other common names in other areas of the world, especially in Asia. There are likely multiple references for some of these names, but many references are in foreign languages. Here I will give examples from Eger et al 2010 of references where the common name was used in the title of the scientific paper. Bean plataspid: Ahmad, I and M. Moizuddin 1975, 1976, 1977, Medal et al. 2013 Lablab bug: Sujithra, et al. 2008 and Thippeswamy, C. and B. K. Rajagopal 1998 and 2005 Globular stink bug: Xing, G.-N., et al. 2006

(Full references at end of proposal.)

10. Other or organisms to which the proposed common name might apply: None that I am aware of. I spoke with Dr. David Orr from North Carolina State Univ. and Dr. Sue Carstensen of the Univ. of South Carolina concerning other Hemiptera that might be commonly associated with kudzu and therefore potentially could be a “kudzu bug.” David Orr has recently conducted research on the fauna of kudzu and worked with a graduate student, Melissa Rose Thornton, on her thesis concerning the fauna of kudzu. He assured me that he did not encounter Hemiptera very often in terms of the total insect fauna and that the two most common species that he did encounter already have common names (the green stink bug and the brown stink bug). He provided me with access to a copy of Melissa Thornton’s thesis (Thornton 2004) and it verifies that Hemiptera are not as plentiful on kudzu as many other kinds of insect fauna. Sue Carstensen also did research on the insect fauna of kudzu while she was an assistant professor at Columbia College in Columbia, SC during the late 1990s. She also assured me that the Hemiptera during that time were a smaller part of the insect fauna associated with kudzu.

There have also been questions as to whether there are two distinct species of Megacopta in its native range and which would be the correct species for the population here in the United States. Recent studies by Hosokawa, et al. 2014 show strong evidence that although there is a large range of genetic and phenotypic diversity, the populations of the current Megacopta cribraria and Megacopta punctissima complex are more likely one diverse species – M. cribraria - rather than two distinct species.

(Full references at end of proposal.)

11. Steps you have taken to consult with other workers who are familiar with the insect or organism as to suitability of and need for the proposed common name: I have consulted with several associates at the University of Georgia Griffin Campus who are working to track the spread of this insect who have expressed their preference to have kudzu bug as this insect’s common name.

I also consulted Joe Eger, the person who originally recognized that the specimens we had been sent for identification were Megacopta cribraria and not a native species. Since the submission of the original proposal with more common usage of Kudzu bug in the literature, he is now supportive of Kudzu bug as the official common name.

I consulted with pentatomid taxonomist David Rider from North Dakota State University concerning the current state of taxonomy for the group and he is of the opinion that currently the group is fairly stable. He agrees however that the use of “stink bug” in common names is most often associated with the family Pentatomidae. For this reason, I believe that Kudzu bug would be a better choice than Globular stink bug.

However, despite the current stability of the group, current changes in taxonomy have shown that even long standing family or higher classification names are being demoted, merged, or reclassified. Recently some long-standing family names such as the Arctiidae and Lymantriidae have been demoted to subfamily status (Zahiri, et al. 2011), some taxonomic sources have grouped the termites (Isoptera) into the order Blattodea, and other family names have been merged and reorganized due to precedence as for example the beetles of the families of Anobiidae and Ptinidae are now considered Ptinidae (rather than both being Anobiidae) since that family name has precedence (Arango and Young 2012). If for example the commonly used anobiid powder post beetle was an official common name, it now would be somewhat inaccurate, as now it should more correctly be called an anobiine powderpost beetle or a ptinid powderpost beetle. I think it is therefore now more important than ever for an official common name to be independent of its scientific classification.

I will also be including my own summation in support of kudzu bug as the official common name.

(Full references at end of proposal.)

Proposed by (your name): Lisa M. Ames

Address: Homeowner Insect & Weed Diagnostics Lab, Department of Entomology, UGA Griffin Campus, 210 Cowart Building, 1109 Experiment Street, Griffin, GA 30223

E-mail: [email protected]

Phone: (770) 228-7220

Fax: (770) 228-7287

Date submitted: 24 August, 2014

References:

Ahmad, I. and M. Moizuddin. 1975. Scent apparatus morphology of bean plataspid Coptosoma cribrarium (Fabricius) (: Plataspidae) with reference to phylogeny. Pakistan Journal of Zoology 7(1): 45-49.

Ahmad, I. and M. Moizuddin. 1976. Biological control measures of bean platspids (: Pentatomoidea) in Pakistan. Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Karachi 6: 85-85.

Ahmad, I. and M. Moizuddin. 1977. Quantatative life history of bean platspid; Coptosoma cribraria (Fabr.) (Heteroptera: Pentatomoidea). Pakistan Journal of Scientific and Industrial Research 20(6): 366-370.

Arango, R. A. and D.K. Young. 2012. Death-watch and spider beetles of Wisconsin. General technical report FPL-GTR-209. Madison, WI: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Forest Products Laboratory. 164 pp.

Easton, E. R. and W.-W. Pun. 1997. Observations on some Hemiptera/Heteroptera of Macau, Southeast Asia. Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington 99(3): 574-582

Eger, J. E., Jr., L. M. Ames, D.R. Suiter, T. M. Jenkins, D. A. Rider, and S. E. Halbert. 2010. Occurrence of the Old World bug Megacopta cribraria (F.) (Heteroptera: Plataspidae) in Georgia: a serious home invader and potential legume pest. Insecta Mundi 0121: 1-11.

Gardner, Wayne G. 2014. Online map: http://www.kudzubug.org/distribution_map.cfm.

Gardner, W. A., Blount, J. L., Golec, J. R., Jones, W. A., Hu, X. P., Talamas, E. J., Evans, R. M., Dong, X., Ray, C. H., Buntin, G. D., Gerardo, N. M., and J. Couret. 2013. Discovery of Paratelenomus saccharalis (Dodd) (Hymenoptera: Platygastridae), and egg parasitoid of Megacopta cribraria F. (Hemiptera: Plataspidae) in its expanded North American range. Journal of Entomological Science 48(4): 355-359.

Hoffmann, W.E. 1932. Notes on the bionomics of some Oriental Pentatomidae (Hemiptera). Archivo Zoologico Italiano (Torino) 16 (3/4): 1010-1027.

Hosokawa, T., Nikoh, N. and T. Fukatsu. 2014. Fine-scale geographical origin of an insect pest invading North America. PLoS ONE 9(2): e89107. doi:10.1371/ journal.pone.0089107

Ishihara, T. 1950. The developmental stages of some bugs injurious to the kidney bean (Hemiptera). Transacctions of the Shikoku Entomological Society 1:17-31.

Jenkins, T. M., T. D. Eaton, D. R. Suiter, J. E. Eger, Jr., L. M. Ames, and G. D. Buntin. 2010. Preliminary genetic analysis of a recently-discovered invasive true bug (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Plataspidae) and its bacterial endosymbiont in Georgia, USA. Journal of Entomological Science 45: 62-63.

Medal, J., Halbert, S., Smith, T., and A. Santa Cruz. 2013. Suitability of selected plants to the bean plataspid, Megacopta cribraria (Hemiptera: Plataspidae) in no choice tests. Florida Entomologist 96(2): 631-633.

Ruberson, J. R., Takassu, K., Buntin, G. D., Eger, J. E., Jr., Gardner, W. A., Greene, J. K., Jenkins, T. M., Jones, W. A., Olson, D. M. Roberts, P. M., Suiter, D. R., and M. D. Toews. 2013. From Asian curiosity to eruptive American pest: Megacopta cribraria (Hemiptera: Plataspidae) and prospects for its biological control. Applied Entomology and Zoology 48(1): 3-13

Srinivasaperumal, S., P. Samuthiravelu, and JMuthukrishan. 1992. Host plant preferences and life table of Megacopta cribraria (Fab.) (Hemiptera: Plataspidae) Proceedings of the Indian National Academy, Part B (Biological Sciences) 58(6): 333- 340

Suiter, D. R., J. E. Eger, W. A. Gardner, R. C. Kermerait, J. N. All, J. K. Greene, L. M. Ames, G. D. Buntin, T. M. Jenkins, and G. K. Douce. 2010. Discovery and distribution of Megacopta cribraria (hemipter: heteroptera: platspidae) in northeast Georgia. Journal of Integrated Pest Management 1(1): 1-4. DOI: 10.1603/ipm10009

Sujithra, M., S. Srinivasan, and K. V. Hariprasad. 2008. Outbreak of lablab bug, Coptosoma cribraria Fab. On field bean, Lablab purpureus var. lignosus Medikus. Insect Environment 14(2): 77-78.

Thippeswamy, C. and B. K. Rajagopal. 1998. Assessment of losses caused by the lablab bug, Coptosoma cribraria (Fabricius) to field bean, Lablab purpureus var. lignosus Medikus. Karnataka Journal of Agricultural Sciences 11(4): 941-946.

Thippeswamy, C. and B. K. Rajagopal. 2005. Life History of lablab bug, Coptosoma cribraria (Fabricius) (Heteroptera: Plataspidae) on field bean, Lablab purpureus var. lignosus Medikus. Karnataka Journal of Agricultural Sciences 18(1): 39-43.

Xing, G.-N., T.-J. Zhao, and J.-Y. Gai. 2006. Evaluation of soybean germplasm in resistance to globular stink bug. Acta Agronomica Sinica 32(4): 491-496.

Zahiri, R., Kitching, I. J., Lafontaine, J. D., Mutanen, M., Kaila, L., Holloway, J. D., and N. Wahlberg2011. A new molecular phylogeny offers hope for a stable family level classification of the Noctuoidea (Lepidoptera). Zoologica Scripta 40 (2) 158-173.

Zhang, Y., Hanula, J. L., and S. Horn. 2012. The Biology and preliminary host range of Megacopta cribraria (Heteroptera: Plataspidae) and its impact on kudzu growth. Environmental Entomology 41(10: 40-50.