BIOLOGICAL CONTROL OF ATHROPODS IN THE PACIFIC ISLAND COUNTRIES - AN OVERVIEW

Sada N. Lal

Pacific Biological Control Workshop

Waipuna Hotel, Auckland NOVEMBER 2009 Major food crops of the Pacific Islands

• •Taro •Breadfruit •Banana Levuana iridescens

• Bessa remota – introduced from Malaysia – Historically one of the most successful biological control of a pest possibly eradicating the host? Rhinoceros Oryctes rhinoceros

• Neochryopus savagei (Carabid beetle) (from Nigeria into , PNG and in 1963) • Alaus speciosus (Elaterid beetle) – into Samoa from Sri Lanka in 1955 • Lanelater fuscipes (Elaterid beetle) – into Samoa from Sri Lanka in 1966 • Rhabditis sp. (Nematode) – into Fiji from Madagascar in 1957 • Scolia ruficornis (Scoliidae wasp) - Samoa 1945, PNG 1952, Fiji 1958, Tokelau 1959, Wallis 1959)

Scolia ruficornis • Metarhizium anisopliae – Introduced first into Samoa from in 1939 – Fiji 1969

– From Fiji to other CRB affected PICs Ma infected grubs

• Oryctes virus – First into Samoa from Malaysia in 1967 – Fiji 1970 – From Fiji to other PICs

Orv ready-to-use solution Other beetle pests of

• Brontispa spp. – Asecodes hispinarium (Samoa 1980s; Nauru 2005)

• Promecotheca spp. – Pediobius parvulus (Eulophidae) • Scapanes australis • Rhynchophorus spp. Coconut stick Graefea crounii • Egg parasitoids – Paranastatus verticalis – P. nigriscutellatus • Introduced to Samoa in 1977, 1978, Tokelau 1980, 1980?

• Neotermes sp. (rainbowii) – Metarhizium anisopliae introduced to Veitupu in Tuvalu (1992) and Rotuma (1994) • Coconut scale – Telsimia nitida - introduced in Rotuma and Tuvalu – Aphytis Chrysomphalus –from Tahiti 1920 – Encarsia citrina - from Tahiti 1920 – nodiceps – Trinidad 1928 – Chilocorus nigritus from Vanuatu (1989) – Pseudoscymnus anomalus (Vanuatu 1989)

• Dysmococcus palmarum – Chrysopa ramburi

Palm Coconut flat

• Bracon sp • Macrocentrus sp • Apanteles agonoxenae • Agathis sp. • Brachymeria fijiensis • Tongamyia cinerella

– Vanuatu – Niue 1998 – Cook Islands 2003 Taro beetle Papuana spp • Tachinid fly Formosa sp. • Scoliid wasp , Astroscolia nitida present in PNG & SI • Oryctes virus is effective but problem of dissemination in field • Metarhizium anisopliae – Tachinid fly, Formosa sp. varying results, not promising as control on its own • Steinernema glasseri and N. feltiae – lab. tests did not obtain very promising Metarhizium anisopliae infected grubs results • Taro hopper Tarophagus proserpina • Cyrtorhinus fulvus – Existing in Fiji and Samoa; introduced elsewhere • Hornworm Hippotion celerio – Blepharipoda cilipes (Tachinid fly) • Taro – Aphelinus spp.

• Whitefly Bemisia tabaci Breadfruit pests and biological control attempts

• Icerya purchasi – Rodolia cardinalis Banana pests and attempts at biological control • Cosmopolites sordidus – Plaesius javanus • octasema – Brachymeria sp – Chelonus sp. nr. stiratigena – Cremalus sp – Stomatomyia tricholygoides – Trichogramma australicum • thrax – Ooencyrtus erionotae – Cotesia erionotae Pests of fruits and vegetables

• Fruit piercing moth Eudocima fullonia • Tachinid fly Winthemia caledoniae – from in 1985 (not established • Ooencyrtus sp. – from PNG via Samoa 1990 • Telenomus lucullus– from PNG via Samoa 1993 In field • Trichogramma papilionis • Telenomus sp. • Germallus pacificus – egg predator • Platynopus melanacanthus – larval predator Scale

• Coccus hesperidum (found its way to Tokelau in 2002)

• Pseudaulacaspis pentagona – Cryptolaemus montrouzieri

• Aonidiella aurantii (Recorded in Southern atoll in 2006) – Telsimia nitida

• Ceroplastes rubens – Aneristus ceroplastae – Diversinervus elegans • Adoretus versutus – Campsomeris marginella modesta (Scoliidae)

• Nisotra basellae Glassy wing sharpshooter Homalodisca vitripennis

• 2001 – French Polynesia • 2007 – Cook Islands • Spread to and Galapagos

• Gonatocerus ashmeadi (FP - 2004; CI - 2007)

• Icerya seychellarum – Rodolia cardinalis

Giant mealybug

• Paracoccus marginatus – Anagyrus loecki – Acerophagus papayae – Pseudleptomastix mexicana – Cryptolaemus montrouzieri Fruit flies Bactrocera spp

• Opius longicaudatus • O. fopius • O. fijiensis • O. hageni • O. oophilus Diamondback moth Plutella xyllostella

• Cotesia plutellae (1971 ; Trinidad 1984) • Oomyzus sokolowskii (Trinidad 1984)

• Diadegma semiclausum – Taiwan1989 and Philippines 1992; ; established in FP

• Diadromus singularis – New Zealand 1943 and 1997; India 1971 ; established in FP Leaf miners

• Liriomyza brassicae – Hemiptarsenus semialbiclavus White flies

• Aleurotrachelus trachoides – Encarsia formosa – Fiji, Nauru and Tonga • Aleurodicus despersus (Fiji 1988) – Encarsia haitiensis – Nephaspis oculatus – N bicolor • Present in Fiji – Megalocaria fijiensis – Serrangiella sp. – Chrysopa sp.

• Bemisia tabaci – Eretmocerus sp – Nauru and NMI – Introduced to Tonga in 2004 and 07 ? Bean podborer Maruca vitrata

• Apanteles etiellae • Bracon cajani • B. thurberiphagae • Eiphosoma annulatum • Phanerotoma bennetti • Goniozus sp. • Perisierola sp •Rice leafroller Marasmia exigua Existing •Apanteles sp., Brachymeria fijiensis, Microchelonus blackburni, Trathala flavo-orbitalis

Introduced from Thailand in 1986 •Apanteles sp., Elasmus sp., Goniozus sp., Latomastrix sp. and Macrocentrus sp Only Goniozus was released and established

• Brown planthopper Nilaparvata lugens •Cyrtorhinus lividipennis •Tythus chinensis

•Rice armyworm Pseudaletia separata • Apanteles expulsus •Apanteles marginiventris • Apanteles ruficrus • Heteropsylla cubana – Olla v-nigrum

• Coffee Berry Borer Hypothenemus hampei – Cephalonomia stephanoderis Acarina

• Tetranychus marianae • T. lambi

– Phytoseiculus macropilis Snails, slugs, ants ?

Giant African Common snail garden snail

Crazy ant

Common garden brown slug Othreis fullonia Winthemia New Caledonia ORSTOM April, 1985 Not established caledoniae Ooencyrtus sp. Papua New ACIAR FPM September, 1990 Established Guinea via Project in Samoa via Samoa Telenomus sp. Papua New ACIAR FPM August, 1993 Established Guinea via Project in Tonga via Tonga Australia Aleurodicus Encarsia Guam USDA April, 1987 ? dispersus ?haitiensis Encarsia Hawaii USDA January, 1988 Established ?haitiensis Nephaspis Hawaii USDA January, 1988 Established oculatus Nephaspis bicolor Hawaii USDA January, 1988 Established

Aspidiotus Chilocorus nigrita Vanuatu CIRAD Project April, 1989 Established destructor Pseudosymnus Vanuatu CIRAD project April, 1989 Established anomalus Plutella Cotesia plutellae Trinidad IIBC May, 1984 Established xylostella Oomyzus Trinidad IIBC May, 1984 Established sokolowskii Diadegma Taiwan AVRDC October, 1989 Failed to semicalusum breed in May, 1990 laboratory

Not established Diadromus New Zealand Crop and March, 1997 ? collaris Food Research Institute Maruca vitrata Apanteles etiellae Trinidad IIBC June, 1990 Not established Bracon cajani Trinidad IIBC June, 1990 Not established Bracon Trinidad IIBC June, 1990 Not thurberiphagae established Eiphosoma Trinidad IIBC June, 1990 Not anulatum established Phanerotoma Trinidad IIBC June, 1990 Not bennetti established Oryctes Baculovirus Samoa K. J. October, Established rhinoceros oryctes Marschall 1991 Laboratory February, 1992 Metarhizium Samoa K. J. October, Established anisopliae var. Marschall 1991 Established major Laboratory February, 1992 Baculovirus Philippines Philippine August, 1992 Established oryctes coconut Authority Metarhizium Philippines Philippine August, 1992 Established anisopliae var. coconut major Authority Baculovirus New Hort & November, Established oryctes Zealand Research, 1993 CRI Papuana uninodis Steinerma feltiae USA via Australia - June, 1986 Steinerma glasseri ,, - ,, Vavraia sp.(Protozoa) ,, - ,,

Porina plestophora ,, - ,, (Protozoa) Nosema costylytrae ,, - ,, (Protozoa) Nosema whitei ,, - ,, (Protozoa) Adelina sp. (Protozoa) ,, - ,,

Beauveria bassiana ,, - ,, Bacillus thuringiensis ,, - ,, Bacillus popillae ,, - ,, Serratia sp. ,, - ,, Cryptoplasmic ,, - ,, polyhedrosis virus Nuclear polyhedrosis ,, - ,, virus Cocktail mixture of RNA ,, - ,, Hypothenemus Cephalonomia New ORSTOM February, 1994 Died in hampei stephanodermis Caledonia laboratory

Marasmia Apanteles sp. Thailand NBCRC February, 1987 Not exigua established Elasmus sp. Thailand NBCRC February, 1987 Not established Latomastrix sp Thailand NBCRC February, 1987 Not established Macrocentrus Thailand NBCRC February, 1987 Not sp. established Goniozus sp. Thailand NBCRC February, 1987 Established

Neotermes sp. Meatarhizium Australia CSIRO, April, 1994 Established anisopliae Canberra Heteropsylla Olla v-nigrum ? ? ? Established cubana