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Oviposition Behavior of the Female Coconut Rhinoceros Beetle, Oryctes Rhinoceros

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Oviposition Behavior of the Female Coconut Rhinoceros Beetle, Oryctes Rhinoceros Oviposition Behavior of the Female Coconut Rhinoceros Beetle, Oryctes rhinoceros (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE DIVISION OF THE UNIVERSITY OF HAWAI‘I AT MĀNOA IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTERS IN SCIENCE IN ENTOMOLOGY DECEMBER 2017 By Megan E. Manley Thesis Committee: Helen Spafford, Co-chairperson Michael Melzer, Co-chairperson Mark Wright Keywords: Coconut rhinoceros beetle, Oryctes rhinoceros, oviposition DEDICATION To my mother, Marilyn Noble Manley, for sacrificing so much to raise me and my sisters and for showing us what a strong woman is. Thank you for never giving up on me and helping me to grow into a woman I know Lolo would be proud of. I love you Mom. AKNOWLEDGEMENTS This thesis was completed with tremendous support from my committee co-chairs, Dr. Helen Spafford and Dr. Michael Melzer, as well as my committee member Dr. Mark Wright. I would like to thank them for giving me this opportunity, and without their constant guidance and advice, I would not have had such a great experience throughout my journey to completing my thesis. I would like to give a special thank you to Dr. Helen Spafford for being an exceptional human being, understanding me as a person, and inspiring me as a woman in science. I also extend an immense amount of gratitude to Dr. Shizu Watanabe for being there for me personally and professionally, and for acting as a true mentor; you are greatly appreciated. I would like to thank the CRB Response Team, Dr. Keith Weiser, Tomie Vowell, Nelson Masang, Scott Appelbaum, Allie Kong, Matthew Kellar, and Brandi Adams for working on the beetle colony with me and helping me with numerous tasks pertaining to my research. I would like to additionally show my appreciation for my fellow lab-mates, Gerald Crank, Priscilla Seabourn, and Leyla Kaufman for supporting me, encouraging me, and offering any help and advice they could even when they had their own busy schedules to tend to. I would also like to thank the many PEPS graduate students for their friendship and support during my time in this program. Most importantly, I would like to thank my giant family, my roommates and my best friends (Lori Anderson, Kristen Cowell, Chloe Facenda, and Michaela Miller) for supporting me fully throughout this process, always being proud and loving me, and always being there for me even when I was not at the best version of myself. Finally, this thesis would not have been possible without funding through USDA- APHIS Farm Bill, the Hawai‘i Invasive Species Council, and the Hawai‘i Department of Agriculture. 1 ABSTRACT The coconut rhinoceros beetle (CRB), Oryctes rhinoceros (L.) (Coleoptera: Scarbaeidae), has become one of the most important coconut and oil palm pests to date. CRB recently emerged in December 2013 as a new invasive pest of coconut palms on O‘ahu, Hawai‘i. Since its detection, efforts have been expended performing delimiting and monitoring surveys, detecting and sanitizing breeding sites, and developing methods for eradication and control. To aid these efforts, information on the factors influencing female adult oviposition behavior and identifying these behaviors is needed. In this study, data and observations were collected from a series of substrate choice tests and depth observations to assess if both lab-reared and wild-caught CRB have a preference for oviposition site or egg-laying pattern. Small or large particle sizes, as well as high (8dS/m) or low (2 dS/m) salinity substrates, were tested and oviposition depths were observed using an observational chamber. Female CRB were found to prefer small particle size substrate and lay their eggs in an aggregated dispersion pattern at various depths up to 119 cm. No preference for substrate salinity was found. Additionally, female CRB were found to differ significantly in their oviposition behavior between lab-reared and wild- caught beetle types. These results can help to identify potential breeding sites and can also be implemented into management programs for future eradication and prevention efforts. 2 TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ....................................................................................................................... 1 ABSTRACT ............................................................................................................................................... 2 TABLE OF CONTENTS ........................................................................................................................... 3 LIST OF TABLES ..................................................................................................................................... 5 LIST OF FIGURES .................................................................................................................................... 6 CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION AND LITERATURE REVIEW ....................................................... 7 IMPACTS OF CRB .................................................................................................................................... 8 LIFE HISTORY ....................................................................................................................................... 10 Egg ....................................................................................................................................................................... 11 Larva ................................................................................................................................................................... 11 Pupa .................................................................................................................................................................... 12 Adult .................................................................................................................................................................... 12 Reproduction .................................................................................................................................................. 13 PEST MANAGEMENT ............................................................................................................................. 14 Monitoring and Trapping .......................................................................................................................... 14 Cultural Management .................................................................................................................................. 15 Chemical Management ................................................................................................................................ 16 Biological Control .......................................................................................................................................... 16 MONITORING AND ERADICATION IN HAWAI‘I ..................................................................................... 19 RESEARCH OBJECTIVES ........................................................................................................................ 22 CHAPTER 2: PREFERENCES OF LAB-REARED AND WILD-CAUGHT COCONUT RHINOCEROS BEETLE (ORYCTES RHINOCEROS, COLEOPTERA: SCARABAEIDAE) FOR OVIPOSITION SITES IN RELATION TO SUBSTRATE PARTICLE SIZE AND SALINITY ..... 23 INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................................................... 23 MATERIALS AND METHODS ................................................................................................................. 26 Insect Colony ................................................................................................................................................... 26 Choice Tests ..................................................................................................................................................... 27 3 Particle Size ...................................................................................................................................................... 28 Salinity ............................................................................................................................................................... 29 Biometrics ........................................................................................................................................................ 29 Data Analysis ................................................................................................................................................... 30 RESULTS ............................................................................................................................................... 31 Particle Size Choice ....................................................................................................................................... 31 Salinity Choice ................................................................................................................................................ 33 Wild-caught vs. Lab-reared ....................................................................................................................... 36 DISCUSSION .......................................................................................................................................... 41 CHAPTER 3: OBSERVATIONS ON COCONUT RHINOCEROS BEETLE (ORYCTES RHINOCEROS, COLEOPTERA: SCARABAEIDAE) OVIPOSITION DEPTH IN A CONTROLLED ENVIRONMENT ......................................................................................................
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