ECOLOGY OF BICOLOR (: SPHECIDAE) IN THE

NORTHERN GULF

By Cheri Muthirakalayil Abraham

A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of Mississippi State University in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Masters of Science in Entomology in the Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology

Mississippi State, Mississippi December 2008

Copyright by

Cheri Muthirakalayil Abraham

2008

ECOLOGY OF (HYMENOPTERA: SPHECIDAE) IN THE

NORTHERN GULF

By Cheri Muthirakalayil Abraham

Approved:

______David Wayne Held Gregg Munshaw Assisstant Professor of Entomology and Assisstant Professor of Plant and Soil Plant Pathology Science (Director of Thesis) (Minor Professor & Committee Member)

______M. Blake Layton Jr. Clarence Collison, Professor and Head, Extension Professor of Entomology and Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology Plant Pathology & Graduate Coordinator (Committee Member)

______William Kingery, Professor and Graduate Melissa J. Mixon, Coordinator, Plant and Soil Science Interim Dean of College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.

Name: Cheri Muthirakalayil Abraham Date of Degree: December 12, 2008 Institution: Mississippi State University Major Field: Turfgrass Entomology Major Professor: Dr. David W. Held Title of Study: ECOLOGY OF LARRA BICOLOR (HYMENOPTERA: SPHECIDAE) IN THE NORTHERN GULF Pages in Study: 62 Candidate for degree of Master of Science

Mole crickets ( spp.) are the most destructive pests in southern turf

and pasture grasses. In response to extensive losses from mole crickets, Florida formed a

task force to identify natural enemies in the native range of these pests. Two parasitic

, Larra bicolor and depleta, and , an entomopathogenic , were imported and released. Of the two insects, only Larra bicolor has spread to other states infested with mole crickets in the southeast. The present study documents the seasonal biology of Larra bicolor in the northern Gulf region, ornamental plants that can be used as nectar sources, and the impact of these nectar sources on longevity of the and parasitism of mole crickets. Results of field and laboratory experiments showed that the ornamenal lanceolata attracted in the field and provided comparable or better longevity than which was the only known nectar source.

Key words: Larra bicolor, nectar sources, Bio control, Spermacoce

verticillata, Scapteriscus control.

DEDICATION

I would like to dedicate this document to my parents, M. C. Abraham and Elizabeth

Abraham, brother Tomci and fiancée, Tina.

ii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The author expresses his sincere gratitude to the many people without whose assistance this thesis would not be possible. First of all, I thank Dr. David W. Held, my graduate advisor, who worked endlessly to make this research possible. I will always be appreciative for his guidance and motivation which has been a never ending process.

Second, I would like to thank my committee members, namely, Dr. Gregg C.

Munshaw, Dr. Blake Layton Jr. and Dr. Clarence Collison for their unending support of this research and Dr. Dennis Rowe who helped me with part of the statistical analysis.

Special thanks are due to Corey Wheeler, research technician, for competent assistance in collecting data especially during times when I was on campus. Thanks to

Patrick Brousssard, Lloyd Easterly, and the staff of the Coastal Research and Extension

Center, Biloxi for making my stay there comfortable and keeping me at home with the facilities provided.

I would like to express my gratitude to the US Golf Association for funding this interesting project. The Green Section Research committee was encouraging and their comments helpful. Many thanks to the staff at Great Southern Golf Club, Gulf Hills Golf

Club and St. Andrews Golf Club where I frequented every week or two. I also thank the

Alabama Turfgrass Research Foundation for funding the survey for Larra bicolor in

Alabama. The staff at golf courses in Alabama namely Springhill College, Country Club

iii

of Mobile, Azalea City Golf Course, Timber Creek and Golf Creek Golf Club, Kiva

Dunes, Peninsula Golf Clubs and Golf Club at the Wharf were helpful during the survey.

Thanks to all of them.

The Mississippi Entomological Association was a strong source of

encouragement through the opportunities for paper presentations and scholarships, and

getting to know other students and accomplished professionals in the state and region. I

would like to thank Arlie and Ethel Wilson for the scholarship I received. Many thanks

to each and every one whose name I may have unknowingly omitted, but have been

instrumental in making my stay at Mississippi State University an experience which will be cherished throughout my life. Thank you one and all.

iv

TABLE OF CONTENTS

DEDICATION ...... ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ...... iii LIST OF TABLES ...... vii LIST OF FIGURES ...... viii CHAPTER I. GENERAL INTRODUCTION ...... 1 Introduction to Turfgrass ...... 1 Turfgrass Pest Management ...... 4 Mole Crickets ...... 5 Pest Species, Distribution and Origin ...... 6 Damage by Mole Crickets ...... 8 Chemical Control ...... 9 Life Cycle and Biology of Scapteriscus vicinus and S. borellii ...... 10 Natural Enemies and Biological Controls...... 13 Larra bicolor- Mole Cricket Killers ...... 16 Morphology of Larra bicolor ...... 16 Parasitism and Biology of Larra bicolor ...... 17 Host Specificity of Larra bicolor ...... 19 Nectar Sources for Larra bicolor ...... 20

II. SEASONAL AND DIEL ACTIVITY OF LARRA BICOLOR IN THE SOUTHEASTERN UNITED STATES ...... 21 Abstract ...... 21 Introduction ...... 22 Materials and Methods ...... 22 Results ...... 25 Discussion ...... 30

III. ORNAMENTAL PLANTS AS NECTAR SOURCES FOR LARRA BICOLOR ..32 Abstract ...... 32 v

Introduction ...... 33 Materials and Methods ...... 37 Source of Plants and Wasps ...... 37 Evaluation of Flowering Plants in a Common Garden Experiment ...... 37 Evaluation of Wasp Longevity in the Laboratory ...... 39 Results ...... 41 Evaluation of Flowering Plants in a Common Garden Experiment ...... 41 Laboratory Longevity Assays ...... 42 Discussion ...... 43

IV. FIRST REPORT OF LARRA BICOLOR (HYMENOPTERA: SPHECIDAE) IN ALABAMA ...... 46 Abstract ...... 46 Introduction ...... 47 Materials and Methods ...... 49 Results and Discussion ...... 50

V. CONCLUSIONS...... 54 BIBLIOGRAPHY ...... 56

vi

LIST OF TABLES

Table Page

2.1 Locations Selected for Monthly Monitoring of Larra Wasps ...... 23

2.2 Diel Activity of Larra bicolor ...... 28 3.1 Horticultural Plants Evaluated as Nectar Sources for Larra bicolor ...... 38

4.1 Numbers of Larra bicolor Reported from Golf Courses in South Alabama ...... 51

vii

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure Page

1.1 Growth Pattern of Cool Season Turf (Turgeon 2005) ...... 2 1.2 Growth Pattern of Warm Season Turf (Turgeon 2005) ...... 2 1.3 Differences in Dactyls Spacing and Pronotum Coloration in Scapteriscus Mole Crickets ...... 8 1.4 a. Larra bicolor b. (photo credit E. Trammel, AR) ...... 17 2.1 a. Larra bicolor Female b. Larra bicolor Male ...... 24 2.2 Seasonal Activity of Larra bicolor ...... 26

3.1 Larra bicolor Feeding on Pentas lanceolata ...... 35

3.2 Spermacoce verticillata as a Weed on the Roadsides of Florida ...... 36 3.3 The Garden Experiment with Plants in Bloom ...... 39

3.4 Arena for the Longevity Tests ...... 40 3.5 Field Test Results of Ornamental Plant Preference for Larra bicolor...... 41 3.6 Lab Trial I - Choice Test with No Food Control, Spermacoce and Pentas ...... 42 3.7 Lab Trial II with Spermacoce, Pentas and Sugar Water Control ...... 43

4.1 a. Larra bicolor (15–20 mm long) is Shown Here Feeding on Flowers of Spermacoce verticillata b. Stinging a Mole Cricket...... 48 4.2 a. A Female L. bicolor Preparing to Enter the Mound in Search for a Mole Cricket. b. Mole Cricket Mound with Hole that was Commonly Observed on Sites where L. bicolor Wasps were Active.. 52

viii

CHAPTER I

GENERAL INTRODUCTION

Introduction to Turfgrass

Ofth 7500sp ci sofplantsinfamilyPoac a (=Gramina ),onlyabout40 sp ci sar us dforth variousfunctionsofturf(Tashiro1987).Th commonlyus d t rm,‘turfgrass’r f rstoth plantofgrass,whil ‘turf’r pr s ntsacommunityof turfgrass sincludingth m diumofitsgrowth(Turg on2005).Accordingtoth  climaticdiff r nc s,turfgrass sar mainlydivid dintowarms asongrass sandcool s asongrass s.Th ydiff rinth irr quir m ntofclimaticcondition,photosynth tic

ffici ncyandoth rgrowthr lat dproc ss s.Warms asongrass s(C4plants)r quir 

27–35°C(80–95°F)foroptimumgrowth,wh r ascools asongrass s(C3plants)r quir 

16–24°C(60–75°F)foroptimumtopgrowthand4–16°C(40–60°F)forrootgrowth

(Turg on2005).AlthoughC4plantsar consid r dmor photosynth tically ffici nt,C3 plantsshowlimit dornowint rdormancy(Turg on2005).Th diff r nc inth growth patt rnofth s twograsstyp sisshowninFigur 1.1and1.2.

1  

Figur 1.1

GrowthPatt rnofCoolS asonTurf(Turg on2005)





Figur 1.2

GrowthPatt rnofWarmS asonTurf(Turg on2005)



2  Accordingtoclimat andpr cipitation,th contin ntalU.S.isdivid dintosix

turfgrasszon s(Pott r1998).Mississippiisinzon 3andcom sund rth warmhumid

zon .Ev nthoughth  ntir stat isclassifi dund rzon 3,th climaticconditionsdo

varyalongth l ngthandbr adthofth stat .Th ar aalongth GulfCoast xp ri nc s

asubtropicalclimat whichiswarmandhumid,butplac snorthofth coast xp ri nc 

cool rwint rsandwarm rsumm rs.Th tropicalclimat inth coastalr gionmak sit b stforth growthofwarms asongrass s.Bahiagrass(Paspalum notatum) , b rmudagrass(Cynodon spp.),zoysiagrass(Zoysia spp.),St.Augustin grass

(Stenotaphrum secundatum),andc ntip d grass(Eremochloa spp.)ar th maingrass s

growninthisr gion.Conditionsinth north rnpartofMississippiar mor favorabl 

forzoysiagrass,wh r asconditionsinth south rnpartofth stat ar mor suit dto

growthofbahiagrassandSt.Augustin grass(Tashiro1987).C ntip d grasshas

distributionallov rth stat mostlyinhom lawnswhil b rmudagrassisus dingolf

cours sandoth rar as.

Unlik rowcropsandoth rplantsofcomm rcialimportanc ,turfgrassandits

importanc ar oft nov rlook d.Yi ldsandloss sinturfgrassar notasw usuallys 

intraditionalcropsorcroppingsyst ms.Turfgrasshasmor ofana sth ticvalu andits b n fitsar notoft ntangibl .For xampl ,h r ar af wqualiti softurfwhichmak 

th mimportant(Morris2003):

• Mod rat lysiz dlawnsof ighthom sar capabl ofcoolingair quival ntto70

tonsofairconditioning.

3  • A 232.3 m2 (2500 foot2) lawn absorbs carbon dioxid  and produc s nough

oxyg ntosupportafourm mb rfamily.

• Ah althylawnr duc ssurfac wat rrunoffupto80tim s.

• Ab autifullawnincr as shom prop rtyvalu sby15%.



Apartfromth s statistics,turfgrassb autifi smillionsofhom lawns,isasaf  playingsurfac onov r700,000athl ticfi lds,andprovid sasourc ofoutdoor

r cr ationforov r26milliongolf rsonabout17,000golfcours s.Witht nsof

thousandsofsodproduc rs,lawncar op ratorsandlandscap rs,th r ar atl ast20

millionha(50millionacr s)ofmanag dturf,withan stimat d$45billionindustryin

allformsinth U.S.(B ardandGr n1994).InMississippi,th r ar mor than1

millionha(2.5millionacr s)ofmaintain dturf,withatl ast121,405ha(300,000acr s)

oflawnsurrounding740,000hom s,160golfcours sand2,000athl ticfi lds

(Anonymous2005).Forthisr ason,turfgrassisan conomically@importantindustry.



Turfgrass Pest Management

Accordingtoth functionsturfp rforms,th tol ranc l v ltop stsanddis as s

vary.Th tol ranc top stsonlowbudg tgolfcours s(i. .,municipalorpublicgolf

cours s)wouldb mor thanthatofprivat ors mi@privat golfcours s.Similarly,th 

tol ranc l v lforp stsinhom lawnsdiff rfromthatofanathl ticfi ld.Privat or

s mi@privat golfcours swouldhav littl ornotol ranc forp stsandtypicallyus 

mor ch micalstocontrolp ststhanpublicgolfcours s.

4  P stsanddis as svaryaccordingtoth climaticzon inwhichth turfisgrown.

For xampl ,mol crick tsar commonlyagr duponasth mostm nacingp stin

turfgrassinth south rnorsouth ast rnpartsofth U.S.,butofnoconc rninth 

north rnU.S.wh r whit grubsar mor probl matic.Apartfromf rtiliz rs,annual

xp nditur sonturfgrassar mostlyforplantprot ctionch micalssuchash rbicid s,

fungicid s,andins cticid s. D spit an mphasisonint grat dp stmanag m nt,turf

manag rsmayb mor lik lytochoos ach micalcontrolthanrisklosingafairwayor puttinggr n.As vid nc ofthis,125,000haofhighmaint nanc ar asofgolfcours s

lik t s,gr ns,andfairwaysw r spray dwithins cticid sin1996(Rack 2000).By

comparison,31%ofp sticid sus dbylawncar compani sar ins cticid sv rsusonly

19%ongolfcours s(GCSAA1998,Rack 2000).Th targ tsofth s ins cticid s,

particularlyinth warmhumidr gionar p stmol crick ts(Scapteriscus spp.),chinch

bugs(Blissusspp.),andcat rpillarp stslik sodw bworms,armyworms,cutworms,and

fir ants.

Mole Crickets

“Mole crickets are the most destructive pests of golf courses, lawns and sod

farms in the southeastern United States. These pests account for hundreds of millions of

dollars in damage and control costs every year” (Pott r1998).Ext nsiv ar asplant din

bahiagrassandb rmudagrass,accompani dbysandysoilswhichaidandfavorth ir

tunn lingb havior(Tashiro1987),mak th GulfandAtlanticcoastsb stsuit dformol 

crick ts.

5  Pest Species, Distribution and Origin

Ofth 80sp ci sofmol crick tsworldwid ,t noccurincontin ntalU.S.,

Hawaii,Pu rtoRico,andVirginIslandsnam ly;Neocurtilla hexadactyla(P rty)th  north rnmol crick t,Gryllotalpa cultrigerUhl rth w st rnmol crick t,Gryllotalpa majorSaussur th prairi mol crick t,Gryllotalpa gryllotalpa(L.)Europ anmol  crick t,Gryllotalpa orientalisBurm ist rori ntalmol crick t,

Scudd rshortwing dmol crick t,Giglio@Tos(=S.acletus)south rn mol crick t,Scapteriscus didactylus(Latr ill )W stIndianmol crick t,orchanga,

Scapteriscus imitatusNickl andCastn rimitatormol crick t,andScapteriscus vicinus

Scudd rtawnymol crick t(Nickl 1992).Amongth s ,onlyfoursp ci sar common inth south ast rnU.S.;th north rnmol crick t,anativ sp ci s,andth immigrant sp ci s; Scapteriscus vicinus,S. borellii,andS. abbreviatus.Th north rnmol crick tis afourclaw dmol crick tunlik th oth rthr whichar twoclaw d(Frank tal.

1994).Th north rnmol crick tison of35sp ci soffourclaw dmol crick ts occurringinthr g n raNeocurtilla, Gryllotalpella, Gryllotalpa (Nickl andCastn r

1984).

 Short@wing dandsouth rnmol crick ts,w r introduc dintoBrunswick,

G orgiain1904,wh r astawnymol crick twasintroduc dhalfad cad  arli ratth  sam plac (Walk randNickl 1981).Th yar b li v dtohav immigrat dtoth U.S. byhitchhikinginth ballastsofth ships,aft rwhichth yslowlyspr ad.Th r ar two morphologicallyr cognizabl formsofth south rnmol crick t,four@dotformand mottl dpronotumform,whichw r introduc ds parat ly.Th formwithamottl d

6  pronotum nt r dth U.S.throughSouthCarolinain1916,T xasin1926,andFloridain

1920(Nickl andCastn r1984).Sinc th irwingsar v stigial,short@wing dmol 

crick tscannotnaturallyspr adfarandar mostlyprobl maticinsouth rnFlorida.In

Mississippi,th south rnandtawnymol crick tsoccurinth south rnpartofth stat 

typicallysouthofI@20(H ld,p rsonalobs rvation).

Dactylspacingisamaincharact rwhichh lpsdistinguishb tw nS. vicinus and

S. borellii.Th twotibialdactylsonS. borellii ar s parat dbyalmostth sam widthas

ith rofth twoclaws,wh r asth tibialclawsonS. vicinusar s parat dbyasmall r

distanc givinganappar ntV@shap toth tawnymol crick tandaU@shap toth 

south rnmol crick t(Hayslip1943)(Figur 1.3).



7  Figur 1.3

Diff r nc sinDactylsSpacingandPronotumColorationinScapteriscusMol Crick ts (photocr dit,L.Buss,Univ.ofFL). 

Damage by Mole Crickets

Withth irstrongfrontl gs(fossorial),mol crick tscaus thr typ sofcaviti s inth ground.Tunn lsr f rtoth d p rmin sth ymak inth ground.Gall ri sar  th horizontalmin smad justb lowth soilsurfac whichcaus soiltobulg abov th  surfac .Boths x scanmak tunn lsandgall ri s,but ggchamb rsar sp cialty caviti smad bygravidf mal s.Th yoccuratd pthsvaryingfrom10@30cmsb lowth 

8  soilsurfac .So,inth soilprofil b ginningatth surfac ,w would ncount rgall ri s first,th ntunn ls,andlat r ggchamb rs.Gall ri sar damagingingolfcours putting gr nsb caus th yd fl ctth rollofagolfball.H avyrainsandirrigationcancl ar th s gall ri sinsandysoilssofr shdamag isoft nappar nt.

Apartfromth tunn ling,h rbivorycanalsocaus damag (Frank tal.1994).

Gut xaminationofth south rnmol crick tsshowthatth irdi tmostly(91%) constitut sofins cts,wh r astawnymol crick tshav aplant@richdi t(66%)with ins ctsorconstitutingasmall rportion(Taylor1979).Oth rScapteriscusmol  crick tsar similarinf dinghabitsandmainlyfallintoth s twocat gori s(Castn r andFowl r1984).

Rootdisruptionthroughtunn lingcaus sdryingofth soilanduprooting follow dbyd siccationofinf st dgrass.Exc ssiv tunn lingcanw ak norkillastand ofturfgrass(Adj i tal.2003).Ev nthoughsp ci smaydiff rbyth charact ristic damag th ymak ,allsp ci sdocaus m chanicaldamag (Castn randFowl r1984).

Incr as ddamag isacc ntuat dinmoist(H rtlandBrand nburg2002)andsandysoils.

Asar sult,w ll@wat r dturfgrass, sp ciallyongolfcours s,ar mor vuln rabl to mol crick tdamag (Hayslip1943).

Chemical Control

B ingsubt rran anp sts,mol crick tsar not asytocontrol.Tob  ff ctiv , ch micalsmustp n trat th thatchlay randr achth mol crick tsinados which wouldb l thaltoth m.Thismayr quir multipl applicationsofp sticid stok p

9  th mund rch ck.Mol crick tscanr port dlyd t ctandavoidsoilstr at dwith ins cticid s(Brand nburg2002)furth rconfoundingmanag m nt.W canobs rv larg  amountsofdamag duringth spring,th r for ch micalapplicationsar n c ssaryat thattim ,how v rth  fficacyofp sticid sar imp d dbyth larg nymphsandadults abundantlypr s ntatthattim .Sinc th ins cticid wouldb mor  ff ctiv against young rnymphs,th yar tob targ t dforoptimumr sults.Thisgiv sawindowfrom

Jun throughJulyforapplicationofth p sticid s,b caus nymphsar smalland asily controll dbutdamag isnotobvious.Thisp riodhow v r,isth b stchanc tocontrol mol crick ts(H ldandLayton2006).Baitsar ins cticid sformulat donapalatabl  foodformol crick ts.Wh nappli dinAugust,baitsw r foundtob mor  ff ctiv  thanoth rmod sofapplication(ShortandKo hl r1977).Amongcommonins cticid s, fipronil(ChipcoChoic ,Bay rEnvironm ntalSci nc )isth most ff ctiv .



Life Cycle and Biology of Scapteriscus vicinus and S. borellii

Mol crick ts ggsar dirtybrownorgrayish,whichar initiallywhit ,ovaland unsculptur d.Inth  ggchamb r,f mal slayaclutchof ggs,av rag numb rof35 p rclutch.Onc  ggsar laid,f mal susuallydonotr visitth chamb r,unlik 

Neocurtillia hexadactylaf mal s,whichdor visitth chamb r.Inc ntralFlorida, gg layingforbothsp ci sb ginsbyth latt rhalfofMarchandismostlycompl t dbyth  firstofJuly(Hayslip1943).Ev ryactivityofth mol crick tsfromflightp riodto ovipositionand gghatchwillshowdiff r nc sdu tog ographiclocation,andh nc  maynotb th sam inplac swithdiff r ntlatitud s.Incubationof ggsist mp ratur 

10  d p nd nt.Incubationisshort stwh nsoilt mp ratur sar around29°C(84°F)and

long stwh nsoilt mp ratur saround20°C(69°F).Incubationistypically5dshort r

forS. vicinus(Hayslip1943).

Eggshatchintonymphs,whichar similarinapp aranc toadults, xc ptth y

lackwings.Inc ntralFlorida,hatchofS. vicinusoccursduringlat April,whil  ggsof

S. borellii hatchin arlyMay(Hayslip1943).Onc  m rg d,nymphsb gins archingfor

food,f dingon ggs,chorions,and v nw ak rnymphs.Nymphsmolt6–10tim s b for b comingadults.Th diff r ntmoltscanb r cogniz dbypronotall ngthwhich

rang sfrom[email protected]mm(0.07–0.32in)(Hudson1987).Numb rofmoltsandnumb r

ofdaysr quir dforb comingadultsvari sb tw nsp ci s.Th d v lopm ntof

wingpadsisanoth rcharact rassociat dwithth d v lopm ntstag sinmol crick t.

Th thr stag sofwingpadd v lopm ntar abs nc ofwingpads,pr s nc ofsmall

wingpads,pr s nc oflarg wingpads.On ortwoofth p nultimat nymphalstag s

willhav smallwingpadswh r asth lastnymphstag haslarg wingpads(Hudson

1987).South rnandtawnymol crick tsar univoltin .How v r,aportionofth  populationmayb com adultsb for wint r,wh r asmostov rwint rasnymphs

(Hayslip1943).

Cool rsoilt mp ratur scaus th mtor mainund rgrounduntilfavorabl 

conditionsallowth mtostartth irnuptialflights.Inamarkandr captur study,on 

mol crick twascoll ct d8kmsfromth r l as sit ,althoughth yar nottypically

longdistanc fli rs(Frank tal.1994).Adultmol crick tshav twopairsofwings

whichar cov r dbyan tworkofv ins,whichar toughtub ssupportingth wing

11  m mbran s.Spac sb tw nth v insar call dc lls.For wingsofmal sandf mal s

diff rslightlyinthatfor wingsofmal shav apairoflarg c lls.Th ant riorsid sof

th s c llsar harp@shap dandcall dth stridulatoryar a.F mal slacksuchlarg c lls.

Inmal s,on ofth v inson achwingismodifi dwithalin oftinyt thtoforma

stridulatoryfil .Thisfil isdrawnacrossascrap ronth oth rwing.Asth wings

clos ,thismak sasound,whichisth irmatingsong(i. .stridulation).Mal sr p atthis

songbyop ningandclosingth irwingsinrapidsucc ssion.Th arrang m ntofth 

t thinth stridulatoryfil diff rsfromsp ci stosp ci s,soth songdiff rsfrom

sp ci stosp ci s.Th loudn ssofth songsvari sbutistypicallyabout70dBat15cm

fromth sourc .Th songisamplifi dbywid ningth mouthofth irgall ryintoa

funn lshap .Th h aringorgans(tympanum)ofmol crick tsar onth tibia ofth 

for l gs(Frank tal.1994).

 Mal tawnyandsouth rnmol crick tssingatnighttoattractf mal s.Flights

b ginsoonaft rsuns tand ndaft rabouton hourinbothth tawnymol crick tand

south rnmol crick t(Hayslip1943,Ulagaraj1975).Th r ar twoflightp riodsfor bothsouth rnandtawnymol crick ts;amajorspringflightandminorfallflightbothof

whichoccurwh nhight mp ratur sar ov r18°C(Ulagaraj1975).Infall,how v r, south rnmol crick tsar pr dominantlyfound(Hayslip1943).Th p akoftawnymol  crick tflightisMarchto arlyApril,andSouth rnmol crick tflightisAprilto arly

May(Hudson2001).About14daft rmating,th f mal lays ggs(Hudson2001).

12 

Natural Enemies and Biological Controls

Inth nativ rang ,Scapteriscus mol crick tsar uncommonandrar lyofp st status(Hudson tal.1988).Thisislik lydu toth pr s nc ofnatural n mi swhich k pth irpopulationsinch ck.Similarly,c rtainpr datorshav b nnot dfor attackingmol crick tsinth Unit dStat s.Subt rran anpr datorslik groundb tl s fromth g nusPasimachusandassassinbugsofth g nusSirthenea attackadultsand nymphs.Adultsofbombardi rb tl sp ci s,Stenaptinus jessoensis (Morawitz)ar  sp cialistpr datorsofmol crick t ggs(Hudson tal.1988).Oth rgrounddw lling pr datoryins ctsandspid rsknowntoattackmol crick tsinclud  arwigs

(D rmapt ra),groundb tl s(Carabida ),tig rb tl s(Cicind llida )andspid rsinth  famili sLycosida andSalticida (Hudson tal.1988).TwoS.vicinuscaptur din acoustictrapsinN wOrl answ r foundtob parasitiz dbyAcridomyiaspp.(Dipt ra:

Anthomyiida )whichar usuallyparasitoidsofgrasshopp rs(Acridida )(H nn and

Johnson2001).Birdslik sandhillcran sandcattl  gr tsforag onmol crick tswh n

th yar n artoth surfac .Insom instanc s,foragingofins ctivorousanimalslik 

armadillosdomor damag toturfthanth mol crick tsth ms lv s.Amongoth r

v rt brat pr datorsar fox s,skunks,raccoons,toads,andbirds(Sailor1984)which

awaitth mabov ground.

Apartfromth s pr dators,mol crick tpopulationsar subj ct dtoattackby

pathog nslik bact ria,fungi,virusandprotozoans.Fungalpathog nslik Beauveria

bassiana (Balasamo),Isaria spp.,Metarhizium anisopliae(M tchnikoff),Entomophthora

13  spp.,andSorosporella uvellahav b nfoundtoinf ctmol crick ts(Hudson tal.

1988). Entomopathog nicn matod Steinernema (=Neoaplectana)carpocapsae W is r whichattacksawid rang ofins ctsw r alsofoundtoinf ctmol crick ts(LimaCosta

tal.1984).

D spit thislistof nd micornaturaliz dandpathog nswhichattack

Scapteriscus mol crick ts,th irpopulationsw r n v rsignificantlyr duc d.In

Florida,amol crick ttaskforc wasform dtoinv stigat classicalbiologicalcontrolof mol crick tsusingnatural n mi sfromth irnativ rang .Th classicalbiocontrol ag ntswhichhav b nsucc ssfullyintroduc dand stablish dinFloridaar th r d@

y d(Dipt ra:Tachinida ), b n ficialn matod Steinernema scapterisci, andth waspLarra bicolor(Sph cida ).InFlorida,acoustictrapcaptur sof

Scapteriscus mol crick tsov r25y arsonth sam sit sb for andaft rth s  biologicalcontrolsw r  stablish dindicat a99%r ductionintrapcaptur s(Frankand

Walk r2006).Thishasb nattribut dlarg lytoth succ ssofth introductionofth s  biologicalcontrols.

InJun 1939,Scapteriscus mol crick tscoll ct dfromB l m,Brazilw r found tob parasitiz dbyatachinidfly(Wolcott1940).In1983,gravidf mal softh sam  sp ci sr spond dtosynth siz dcallsofScapteriscus borelliiinParaguay(Fowl rand

Kochalka1985) arli rr port d(Mangold1978).Thisflywasfirstid ntifi das

Euphasiopteryx australis (Wolcott1940)andlat rfoundtob Euphasiopteryx depleta

(Sabrowsky1953).Th g n ricnam waslat rmad asynonymofOrmia, thus changingth nam toOrmia depleta(Wood1987).Aft rcoll ctingth flyandhosts

14  fromPiracicaba,Brazil,th firstlaboratoryr ar dcolonywasachi v din1987.In spring1988,adultOrmia depletaw r r l as dinFlorida(Frank tal.1996).Th s fli s hav b nsucc ssfullyr ar donallsp ci sofScapteriscusmol crick tsandontwo gryllids(AnurogryllusandGryllus)(Fowl randM sa1987).Ext nsiv r s archand r l as softh tachinidflyinFloridasucc d din stablishinglocalpopulations.Injust on y ar,th r wasan85%d cr as inmol crick tinf stationscompar dtoar as wh r th flyhadnotb com  stablish d(Frank tal.1996).Byth summ rof1994,O. depletahadspr adthroughoutFloridaandthisspr adwasassociat dwithd cr as sin mol crick tpopulations(Frank tal.1996).AcoustictrapsinN wOrl ans,LAhav  trapp dS. borellii whichw r parasitiz datagr at rrat thanwas arli rr port dfrom

Florida(Frank tal.1996,H nn andJohnson2001).

In1985,Steinernema scapterisci wasbroughtfromUruguaytoFlorida.Aft r laboratory valuation,th firstsmallplotr l as sw r don n arth Univ rsityof

FloridainAlachuaCountyinJun 1985(Parkman tal.1993).Th r ar thr s parat  lif stag s: gg,fourstag sofjuv nil s,andadult(mal andf mal )ofwhichth third stag juv nil isth mostimportantforbiologicalcontrolofmol crick ts.Th y nt r th mol crick tthroughitsmouthorspiracl s.Onc insid ,th juv nil sr l as  bact riaintoth h moc lofth irhost.Th bact riumcaus sd athofth mol crick t bymultiplyingwithin,andth n matod f dsonth bact ria(Nguy nandSmart1992).

Initiallyr l as dasaclassicalbiocontrolag ntorbiop sticid ,thisn matod hasb n comm rcializ dandnowsoldund rth trad nam N matacS™.Th succ ssful inoculativ r l as ofthis xotic ntomopathog nicn matod wasth firstclassical

15  biocontrolagainstmol crick ts(Parkman tal1994,ParkmanandSmart1996).Ev n thoughth initialcostsofusingN matacSisconsid rablyhigh rthanth costofan ins cticid tr atm nt,inf ctionmayp rsistfromy artoy ar.Ev nthoughstudi shav  shownthatmol crick tscanb haviorallyavoidsoilstr at dwith ntomopathog nic fungi(Villani tal.2002),aft rSteinernema w r  stablish d,upto80%ofmol  crick tstrapp donthos sit sw r inf ct d(L ppla tal.2007).Thisn matod isalso compatibl withins cticid scommonlyus dinturfgrass(BarbaraandBuss2006),



Larra bicolor- Mole Cricket Killers

Ov r60sp ci softh g nusLarra(Hym nopt ra:Sph cida )ar knowntob  parasitoidsthatpr yonmol crick ts(BohartandM nk 1976).Larra americana

Saussur nowknownasLarra bicolor(BohartandM nk 1976)wasintroduc dinto

Floridathroughth  ffortsofth mol crick ttaskforc .Succ ssfulintroduction

(Wolcott1938)and stablishm nt(Wolcott1941)of Larra bicolor intoPu rtoRico trigg r dth s archforthisnatural n mytocontrolth damag caus dbyp stmol  crick ts.

Morphology of Larra bicolor

Th abdom nofLarra bicolorissolidr dandwingsar smokybrownorindigo blu withsilv rywhit markingsonth irh ad.Incontrast,Larra analis,anativ sp ci s thatattacksNeocurtilla hexadactyla, hassimilarcolor dwingsandadarkcolor d abdom nwithonlyr datth tip(Figur 1.4).

16  Th tarsalclawsar shortandwithoutinn rt th.Th for tibiahasspin rows, withoutt thoninn rmarginofmandibl andpropod umisconstrict datth l v lof spiracl swithaglossyint gum nt.F mal shav athick rpronotalcollar,straightontop andashighasscutumandst rnumIIwithoutapairofsp cialflatt n dovalar as basally.Th pygidialplat isbar andwithoutatransv rs rowofshorts ta apically.

F mal sar g n rallybigg r(av rag siz 22mm)thanth irmal count rparts(Frank andSourakov2002).

 

Figur 1.4

a.Larra bicolor b.Larra analis(photocr ditE.Tramm l,AR)



Parasitism and Biology of Larra bicolor

Inshort rmownturfgrass,f mal Larrawaspsmak shortflightsacrossth grass landingth ninitiatingawalkings archforhosts(p rsonalobs rvations).Mosthost s archingb haviorsobs rv dinMississippiw r oncloudl ssdayswithlowtomod rat  winds(i. ,≤10mil p rhour),whichisconsist ntwithWolcott(1938).Also,Larraar 

17  g n rallyfirstobs rv dinMississippiin arlytomidmorningcontinuingthroughth  lat aft rnoonifconditionsar favorabl (p rsonalobs rvations).Th r isvariation r port dinth foragingb haviorofLarrawaspsobs rv dbydiff r ntr s arch rsin diff r ntlocations.InBrazil,flightabundanc wasr lativ toth b ginningand ndof th rainys ason(F bruaryandMay,r sp ctiv ly).Thisisattribut dtoth  as of locatinghosttunn lsinth moistsoilduringth s tim s.Soilandambi ntair t mp ratur smayalsoplayarol inhuntingb havior.Assoilt mp ratur sincr as dto

50°C,hosthuntingb cam sporadic(Castn randFowl r1987).Wh nwaspsar not huntingth ymays ksh lt rinth foliag ofn ctarproducingplantsorb haviormay switchfromhuntington ctarf ding.

Wh nhunting,Larrawaspswalkonth surfac ofsoilant nnatingth soiland turfasth ymov (p rsonalobs rvations).Wh nasurfac tunn lis ncount r dth  waspwill nt rand xitth sam tunn lmanytim saft rwhich,du tounknown r asons,th mol crick trush soutofth tunn l,follow dbyth wasp(Castn rand

Fowl r1987).Althoughattacksmayoccurund rground,th waspismor fr qu ntly obs rv dattackingpr yonth soilsurfac .Itisr port dthatn arlyhalfofpr ythat xit th hol  scap parasitism(Castn randFowl r1987).Th waspstingsth mol crick t andlaysan ggonc th pr yisinhand.Thiswaspisan ctoparasitoid,anditsv nom onlyt mporarilyparalys sth mol crick tprovidingawindowforoviposition.Aft r layingth  gg,th waspmayl av th mol crick t(FrankandSourakov2002)or r maintoguardituntilth hostr cup rat sfromparalysisandr sum sitsnormalroutin 

(Castn r1988).Instudi s,itwasobs rv dthatmajorityofth waspslaidonlyon  gg

18  onth v ntralsid ofth mol crick t.Ifan ggwas arli rlaid,itwouldb r mov d b for anoth rwaslaid.Thisb havior nhanc dth chanc ofth singl  succ ssfullyd v loping(Castn r1986).

Eggincubationmaytak aslittl as4daysinsumm r,andth r ar 5larval instarsb for pupation.Tim fromovipositiontopupationist mp ratur d p nd ntand tak sfrom12–30days(Cushman1935,FrankandSourakov2002).About2w ksaft r oviposition,th wasplarva now14–26mm,willkillth host,consumingth softbody partsl avingonlyth scl rotiz dportions.Th cocoonisform dinaboutadayandis construct dofasilk ncas andcommonlycov r dwithsand.Th adultwasp m rg s

6–8w ksaft rcocoonsar form d(Cushman1935,FrankandSourakov2002).



Host Specificity of Larra bicolor

Larra bicolor willsucc ssfullyd v loponallsp ci sofScapteriscusmol  crick tspr s ntinth Unit dStat sbutnotonth nativ sp ci s,N. hexadactyla.Th  nativ mol crick twh nattack d mitsastickyanals cr tionwhich ntangl sth wasp, notallowingfurth rparasitism.Ev nwh nL. bicolor canr adilyovipositonN. hexadactyla,th wasplarvacannotsucc ssfullyd v loponthathost.Larra analis,th  afor m ntion dnativ sp ci s,isth commonparasitoidofN. hexadactyla(Frankand

Sourakov2002).Havingco xist dsinc  arly1900s,th nativ sp ci s,Larra analis hav noty tb nconsid r daparasitoidofScapteriscusmol crick ts.

19 

Nectar Sources for Larra bicolor

Larra bicolor isr port dtof donflow rsofs v ralsp ci sofunr lat dw ds andwildflow rsincludingdollarw dandragw d(Frank tal.1994).Ar vi wof lit ratur showsth r hav b nnostudi stoid ntifyornam ntalplantswithflow rsthat canb us dbyL. bicolor. Amongth w dysp ci s,Spermacoce verticillata

(Rubiac a )ispr f rr dbyth waspandiscommonlyus dtomonitorwaspactivity

(M agh randFrank1998).Floralcharact risticsimportantforL. bicolorar floral d pth,whichis qualtoth l ngthofth irglossaincas ofSpermacoce(Ar valoand

Frank2005),andan ctarwithasucros :h xos ratio>1(Ar valoandFrank, unpublish ddata).

PopulationsofL. bicoloronflow rsar mal bias dinth morning,wh n pr sumablyf mal sar hunting,butcontainmor f mal sinth aft rnoonand arly

v ning(Castn randFowl r1987).Flow rf dingorforagingoccursfrom0830to

1530hoursformal andf mal L. bicolor(Castn randFowl r1987)butisd p nd nton t mp ratur .Inadditiontof ding,th s waspsmayalsor stonflow ringplants.Th  originsorpurpos ofsuchb haviorsar notknown.

20 

CHAPTER II

SEASONAL AND DIEL ACTIVITY OF LARRA BICOLOR IN THE

SOUTHEASTERN UNITED STATES

Abstract

Ev nthoughLarra bicolorhasb ncontrollingmol crick tsinFloridasinc 

1993,th r hasb nnostudytodocum ntth s asonalanddi lactivityofth waspin

NorthAm rica.Th onlypr viousstudy(Castn randFowl r1987)thatdocum nt dth 

di lactivitywasconduct dinPu rtoRicooritsnativ rang andh nc mayb diff r nt

fromwaspb haviorsinNorthAm rica.Th obj ctiv softhisstudyw r tor cordth 

s asonalactivityofth waspinth north rnGulfCoastr gionandtor cordth di l

activityofforagingwasps.Ar asinsouthMississippiwh r populationsofLarra bicolor

w r knowntob  stablish dw r surv y d v rytwow ksduring2006@2008to

docum ntth s asonalactivity.Inon ofth s ar as,hourlyobs rvationsw r don to

not th di lactivityofth wasp.Waspsw r typicallyactiv fromlat Mayto arly

D c mb rwithslightvariationsb tw nlocations.Waspsw r activ as arlyas0600h

andr main dactiv until1900h.Thisinformationisus fultoincorporat anint grat d

approachtocontrolmol crick tsbyr ducingins cticid sandtimingspraysinsucha

waythatwaspsar notaff ct d.

21  Introduction

Mostofth pr @r l as r s arch,includingbiologicaland cologicalstudi son

Larrawasps,wasconduct dinBrazilandPu rtoRico.Th mostwid lycit dstudyon th s asonalflightp riodanddi lpatt rnsofL. bicolor wasconduct dinPu rtoRico.

Thisstudy,conduct dinon g ographiclocationov r10dinasingl growings ason, do snotprovid informationaboutth activityofthiswaspinsubtropicalpartsofNorth

Am rica.Asth wasp xpandsfurth rnorthandw stinth south rnU.S.(H ld2005,

Abraham tal.2008),itisimportanttound rstanditsflightactivityinthisr gion.Th  obj ctiv ofthisstudyh nc wastomonitorth s asonalactivityanddi lactivityof

Larra bicolorinth North rnGulfr gion.

 MaterialsandMethods

FromJun –August2006, ightgolfcours sinsouthMississippiw r visit dand surv y dforL. bicolor.Manyofth s cours sinclud sit sinsouthMississippiwh r 

Larrawasoriginallydiscov r d(H ld2005).Ofth s  ight,thr (Tabl 2.1)w r  s l ct dfors asonalmonitoringofLarra bicolor.Onth s thr cours s,twosit s wh r L. bicolor w r foundonmor thanon occasionw r s l ct dformonthly monitoring.

  





22  Tabl 2.1

LocationsS l ct dforMonthlyMonitoringofLarraWasps

 Name, Location Site 1 Site 2

Gulf Hills Golf Club, 5th fairway 7th Tee Ocean Springs, MS St. Andrews Golf Club, 5th fairway 7th green Ocean Springs, MS Great Southern Golf 11th fairway Back 9 Club, Gulfport, MS MS State University, Flower garden Flower garden Coastal REC, Biloxi, MS

 

FromApril–D c mb r,2006–2008, achsit wasscout dfor15–20minut sfor waspactivity.On achgolfcours sit ,ar asinf st dwithmol crick tsandshowing fr shactivityw r firstscout d.Th s ar asw r s l ct db caus L. bicolor commonly

walksov rth turfs archingforactiv burrowsinwhichto nt r.Obs rvationsdon in

th gard natth CoastalRECw r ofwaspsforagingonflow ringplants(i. .,

Spermacoce verticillata orPentas lanceolata).Sinc th s waspsar not dn ctar

f d rs,monitoringflow ringplantswouldgaug th activityofL. bicolorinthat

location.Monitoringwasdon oncl ardays,b tw n1000–1500hours.Obs rvations

w r don  v rytwow ks.

 Di lactivityofL. bicolorwasstudi dbymonitoringwaspactivityonflow rsof

bloomingplotsofSpermacoceverticillata andPentaslanceolata.Th s plotsw r part

ofth gard n xp rim ntd scrib dinmor d tailinChapt rIII.Thisstudywas

conduct dfrom7–10Aug,2007and9@11Oct,2008wh nwasppopulationsw r 

23  abundant noughtocoll ctdata.Th numb rands xofwaspsonflow ringplantsin

ightplotsinth gard nw r tak nhourlyfrom0500–2000h achday.F mal andmal  waspsw r distinguish dbas donmorphologicaldiff r nc softh irwings.Th f mal 

Larrawasphadasolidblackcolortoitswingandadarkr dabdom noppos dtoth  lightr dabdom nandwinglight ratth bas anddark ratth ap xinth mal s(Figur 

2.1)(p rsonalobs rvations).











Figur 2.1

a.Larrabicolor F mal b.Larra bicolor Mal 



Duringth s  xp rim nts,obs rvationsw r mad for20minut s achhour.

Waspsthatland donflow rsw r count d v nifth yd part dwithoutactually f ding.Dataw r coll ct dalldayd spit chang sinw ath rsuchasrainorov rcast conditions.T mp ratur datawastak nfromdatalogg rs(#450,Sp ctrum

T chnologi s,Plainfi ld,IL)adjac nttoth flow rgard n.

24  Results

Th s asonalactivityofLarra bicolorhasb nmonitor dsinc 2006andisinits thirdy ar.Typically,waspsw r firstobs rv dinMayandactivitycontinu duntil

D c mb r(Figur 2.2)wh nth ambi ntt mp ratur stypicallyw r atorb low20°C.

Waspsw r notobs rv dongolfcours sbrowsingonth turforparasitizingmol  crick tsb for Jun oraft rNov mb r.Inth flow rgard n,how v r,waspsw r  pr s nt arli randlat rinth s ason.Waspsw r activ onallsit ssurv y d xc pt on .Waspsw r pr s ntatSt.Andr wsgolfcours in2006butn v robs rv d th r aft r.

25  

Figur 2.2

S asonalActivityofLarra bicolor

26  Waspsw r obs rv donflow rsfromabout0600hto1900h achdayin summ randfrom0900hto1700hinfallwh nt mp ratur sw r cool r(Tabl 2.2).

Sunris andsuns tduringsumm rdaysw r at0520hrsand1845hrs,and0600hrsand

1730hrsduringfall,r sp ctiv ly.Mal sw r consist ntlypr s ntat achhourly obs rvationwh r asf mal foragingwasmor sporadic.P akforagingonflow rsis hardtod t rmin b caus som waspscouldr mainonflow rsandnotforag .Wasps w r stillcount difpr s ntonth flow rsfromth pr viousobs rvation.Th gr at st numb rofmal swasr cord d(Tabl 2.2)at1800,1000,and1000–1100hoursforAug

7–9,r sp ctiv ly,wh r asth gr at stnumb rofmal sduringOct9@11w r at1500 hrsonallthr days.Th gr at stnumb roff mal swasr cord dat1100,1300,and

1000forAug.7–9,r sp ctiv lyandduringOct9@11abundanc off mal swasalso aroundth 1500hrmark.Waspsw r obs rv dr stinginth shad dint riorof flow ringplantsandjustaf ww r obs rv dtosp ndth ov rnightp riodonth plant.

Int r stingly,mostwaspsl av th plantatorn ardusk.Att mptstofollowindividual waspsatth  ndofth dayw r notsucc ssful.Waspscouldb “Sl ping”in surroundingv g tationinaclust roralon ass ninoth rsolitarywasps(O'N ill

2001).











27  Tabl 2.2

Di lActivityofLarra bicolor

  Numb rofwasps  Dat  Tim  Mal  F mal  Total Soil Air T mp ratur  T mp ratur  (°C) (°C) 08@07@07 0500 0 0 0 28.7 27.6  0600 0 0 0 28.7 27.2  0700 1 6 7 28.3 27.2  0800 1 0 1 28.3 28.3  0900 7 0 7 28.3 30.4  1000 14 0 14 28.3 31.6  1100 15 0 15 28.7 34.1  1200 11 3 14 28.7 34.9  1300 16 14 30 29.5 34.9  1400 12 6 18 29.9 31.2  1500 1 4 5 28.7 24.4  1600 5 9 14 28.0 26.0  1700 25 5 30 28.0 29.5  1800 31 9 40 28.3 31.2  1900 15 5 20 28.3 30.4  2000 0 0 0 28.3 29.5 08@08@07 0500 0 0 0 28.0 27.6  0600 0 0 0 27.6 26.8  0700 14 6 20 27.6 27.2  0800 7 0 7 27.6 28.3  0900 13 2 15 27.6 29.9  1000 21 7 28 28.0 31.6  1100 7 1 8 28.0 34.1  1200 17 1 18 28.7 35.8  1300 18 10 28 29.5 33.6  1400 9 7 16 29.5 34.1  1500 8 2 10 29.9 34.9  1600 3 0 3 30.4 33.6  1700 2 0 2 30.4 33.6  1800 2 0 2 30.4 32.8  1900 4 0 4 29.9 32.4  2000 0 0 0 29.9 32.0 08@09@07 0500 0 0 0 28.7 28.0  0600 0 0 0 28.3 27.6  0700 0 0 0 28.3 27.6 28  Tabl 2.2Contd…   0800 0 0 0 28.3 29.5  0900 9 0 9 28.3 31.6  1000 18 11 29 28.7 32.8  1100 18 5 23 29.1 34.9  1200 4 1 5 29.5 34.9  1300 6 1 7 29.9 34.5  1400 3 5 8 30.4 34.9  1500 1 0 1 30.4 29.1  1600 4 0 4 30.4 31.6  1700 0 0 0 29.9 29.1  1800 1 0 1 29.5 27.6  1900 0 0 0 29.5 28.3  2000 0 0 0 29.1 28.0 10@09@08 0500 0 0 0 23.7 16.0  0600 0 0 0 23.7 16.0  0700 0 0 0 23.3 16.4  0800 0 0 0 23.3 16.8  0900 1 0 1 23.3 18.3  1000 1 1 2 23.3 20.6  1100 0 2 2 23.7 21.3  1200 2 0 2 24.4 21.7  1300 10 1 11 24.8 24.0  1400 15 0 15 25.6 24.8  1500 15 3 18 26.4 25.2  1600 6 1 7 26.8 24.0  1700 1 1 2 26.8 23.3  1800 0 0 0 26.8 23.7  1900 0 0 0 26.4 20.2  2000 0 0 0 26.0 19.0 10@10@08 0500 0 0 0 23.7 16.8  0600 0 0 0 23.3 16.4  0700 0 0 0 23.3 16.4  0800 0 0 0 23.3 17.1  0900 0 0 0 22.9 19.4  1000 1 0 1 23.3 22.5  1100 0 1 1 23.7 25.2  1200 5 0 5 24.4 26.8  1300 19 2 21 25.2 27.2  1400 16 2 18 26.0 28.3  1500 23 2 25 26.8 28.7  1600 13 0 13 27.2 28.3 29  Tabl 2.2Contd…   1700 5 1 6 27.2 27.2  1800 0 0 0 27.2 25.2  1900 0 0 0 27.2 22.1  2000 0 0 0 26.8 21.3 10@11@08 0500 0 0 0 24.0 18.3  0600 0 0 0 24.0 18.3  0700 0 0 0 24.0 18.3  0800 0 0 0 23.7 19.0  0900 0 0 0 23.7 22.5  1000 1 0 1 24.0 24.8  1100 2 0 2 24.4 26.8  1200 13 0 13 25.2 26.4  1300 19 2 21 26.0 28.3  1400 23 1 24 26.4 27.6  1500 25 2 27 26.8 28.0  1600 14 0 14 27.2 27.2  1700 2 0 2 27.2 25.6  1800 0 0 0 27.2 24.8  1900 0 0 0 26.8 23.3  2000 0 0 0 26.4 23.3

*Numb rsinboldd not th p akactivityduringth day

Discussion

Thisstudyisth firsttodocum ntdailyforagingactivityofL. bicolor inNorth

Am rica.Pr viousstudi sonth di lb haviorw r conduct dinPu rtoRicoand

Brazil.ForagingactivityofL. bicolor waspsinPu rtoRicowasb tw n0830and1530 hours(Castn randFowl r1987)notablyshort rthanth dailyforagingtim sr port d h r insumm r.Maximumactivityoccurswithsoilt mp ratur b tw n28@30°Candan airt mp ratur of30@35°C.Ev nthoughwasppopulationatn ctarsourc ss mtob  mal bias d,g n rallyaround1300–1400hrs,mal :f mal ratiosonflow rsar n arly

30  on toon .Mal sandf mal sforag onflow rstoobtainn ctar(carbohydrat s)to sustainactivity.F mal shav amor  ph m ralpr s nc du toactiv lys archingfor hostsforoviposition.Castn randFowl r(1987)alsor port dmal bias dpopulations onflow rs.Mal sw r n v robs rv dtoatt mpttomat whil f mal sforag dwhich isconsist ntwithobs rvationsbyM nk (1992)thatmatingoccursonth grass.Wasps w r obs rv dr stinginth shad dint riorofflow ringplantsandjustaf ww r  obs rv dtosp ndth ov rnightp riodonth plant.R stinginth shad mayindicat a th rmor gulationb haviortocoolth thoracict mp ratur b caus suchb haviorwas notic dfrom1200hrsto1400hrswh nth t mp ratur wasatitsp akduringth day.

Waspl ftth plantsb tw n1800–1900hinsumm rand1700@1800hduringfall,butit isnotknownwh r th s waspssp ndth nightp riod.B caus airt mp ratur sdidnot s mtotrigg rthis,waspsmayus dusk(1845h)asatrigg rtol av th n ctarsourc s.

B caus th r isnopassiv monitoringsyst mforth wasp,dir ctobs rvations ar th onlym ansofmonitoring.Thisinpart xplainswhydatafroman ntir month w r pool dandnotpr s nt dass parat obs rvations.InJun 2007,for xampl ,th r  wasa2w kp riodwh nnowaspsw r found.Thishasb ncall dth ‘summ r slump’(H.Frank,p rsonalcommunication)andd scrib sagapb tw nth  m rg nc s oftwog n rations.St.Andr wsGolfCours r port dlyhadwaspsin2004(H ld2005) andsom w r not din2006.How v r,allsubs qu ntsurv ysfail dtoshowth wasps.

Th onlyr port dchang duringthistim isamor strictins cticid r gim whichis

vid ntinl ssmol crick tactivityonth cours .Th impactofturfgrassins cticid s onLarra bicolor hasnotb nstudi d.

31  

CHAPTER III

ORNAMENTAL PLANTS AS NECTAR SOURCES FOR LARRA BICOLOR

Abstract

Parasiticwaspsg n rallyb n fitfromacc sstocarbohydrat s,primarilyinn ctar fromflow ringplants.Larra bicolor f donn ctarofc rtainwildflow rsandw ds includingSpermacoce verticillata.Th obj ctiv ofthisstudywasto valuat c rtain ornam ntalplantsasn ctarsourc sforadultL. bicolorandto valuat th pot ntial b n fitsofflow rf dingonlong vityandparasitism. PlantssimilartoSpermacocein structur andn ctarsourc w r us dtofindifanyofth mattract dLarra bicolor.A commongard n xp rim ntincluding13taxaofornam ntalplantsandS. verticillatain fourr plicat swasus dtod t rmin th pr f r nc ofL. bicolor forc rtainflow ring plantsund rfi ldconditions.Pentasattract dasmanywaspsasSpermacoce.Awhit @ flow r dvari tyofp ntaswasvisit dmor oft nbyL. bicolor thanoth rp ntas vari ti s.Th s r sultsw r furth rinv stigat dinlaboratorylong vityt sts.Wasp survivalonP ntaswascomparabl orb tt rthansurvivalofwaspsprovision dwith

Spermacoce.Th s r sultssugg stthatp ntasmayb plant dinlandscap stosustain thiswaspandp rhaps nhanc biologicalcontrol.

32 

Introduction

Flow rf dingiscommoninparasitichym nopt rans(J rvis tal.1993)dir ctly

consumingfloraland xtrafloraln ctarorpoll n,toal ss r xt nttrichom s, pid rmis

orindir ctlyhon yd w.Pr s nc ofn ctaroroth rcarbohydrat sourc scanattractand

r tainnatural n mi s,(EvansandSwallow1993,JacobandEvans1998)th r by

incr asingparasitism.Incorporatingflow ringplantsadjac nttoturfgrasshas

implicationsforp stmanag m nt.Tiphia vernalis(Hym nop t ra:Tiphiida ),

introduc dforbiologicalcontrolofJapan s b tl (Popillia japonica)grubs,w r found

topr f rflow rsofPeonia spp.ingard nswithoth rbloomingplants(Pott rand

Rog rs2004).Inlandscap sorongolfcours s,d cr as dp standincr as dpr dator populationsw r obtain dwh ncons rvationstripsandwildflow rmix sw r 

incorporat d(Braman tal.2002,FrankandShr wsbury2004).Similarly,parasitismof

Japan s b tl sgrubsbyTiphia vernalis wasgr at rwithin1mofapatchofflow ring

Peonia spp.(Pott randRog rs2004).

Similarpatt rnsar visibl in Larra bicolor,an ctoparasit of xotic

Scapteriscus mol crick ts,whichnotablyvisitsflow ringplantssuchasSpermacoce

verticillata (Rubiac a ).Th pr s nc ofn ctarsourc sar r port dlyimportantto

stablishm ntofL. bicolor(L ppla tal.2007).Arav loandFrank(2005) valuat d

foursp ci sofflow ringwildflow rs,Conoclinium coelestinum,Elephantopus elatus,

Passiflora coccinea,andSolidago fistulosaforvisitationsbyL. bicolor andsugarcont nt

33  ofth irn ctar.Allw r visit dl ssthanS. verticillata andhadalow rsucros @fructos  ratio.

Flow ringornam ntalplantsp ci scommonlygrownfora sth ticsorfor attractingbutt rfli sar alr adypr s ntinurbanlandscap s.Id ntifyingflow ring plantsthatwouldalsoprovid an cologicals rvic mayfacilitat  stablishm ntand succ ssofL. bicolorinlawnsandgolfcours turfgrass.Sinc S. verticillataisaw din coastalar as(Ev r st tal.1996)(Figur 3.2)andov rwint rsinth landscap incoastal

Mississippi(p rsonalobs rvations),th obj ctiv ofthisstudywastoinv stigat  alt rnativ ornam ntalplantswithflow rsofsimilarshap andsiz asSpermacoce, particularlyoth rsp ci sinth Rubiac a .

InsouthMississippi,L. bicolor wasfoundf dingonPentas lanceolata

(Rubiac a )inth landscap (p rsonalobs rvationsFigur 3.1).Thissugg ststhat p ntasandp rhapsoth rflow ringplantsinth Madd rfamilycouldsubstitut asa n ctarsourc forL. bicolor.Vari ti sofP. lanceolatavaryinflow rcolorandplant h ight.P ntasar commoninsouth rnlandscap sforth irh attol ranc and attractiv n sstobutt rfli s(Brun r tal.2002).B caus p ntasar similarinflow r shap andinth sam familyasSpermacoce,oth rm mb rsofth Madd rfamilymay alsob attractiv toL. bicolor.





34   

Figur 3.1

Larra bicolor F dingonPentas lanceolata



D spit th pr viousr s archonL. bicolor,th influ nc ofn ctarsourc son waspsurvivalorparasitismar notknown.L ppla tal.(2007)sp culat sthat“Th  wasps(L. bicolor)willforag formol crick tsmor  ff ctiv lyifS.verticillataplants ar availabl asasourc ofn ctar”.Thishypoth sisandth pr f r nc ofL. bicolor waspsforornam ntalplantsinth fi ldw r t st dtod t rmin th influ nc ofn ctar sourc sonwasplong vityinth laboratory.



35   



Figur 3.2

Spermacoce verticillataasaW donth Roadsid sofFlorida

36  Materials and Methods

Source of Plants and Wasps

 Plantsforthisstudyw r grownatth SouthMississippiBranchExp rim nt

StationinPoplarvill ,MSorpurchas dfromlocalr tail rs.Th plantsw r nottr at d withins cticid sbutw r f rtiliz dusing10@50@10(SchultzCo,Bridg ton,MO) r gularlytok pth mblooming.Waspsforus inth s  xp rim ntsw r fi ld coll ct dwithin12hofth startofth  xp rim nt.Waspsw r coll ct dusinga batt ry@pow r dvacuummodifi dforins ctcoll ction(#2820A,BioquipProducts,

RanchoDomingu z,CA)orcoll ct dusingana rialn t.Waspsw r stor dinacool r withic packsfortransporttoth lab.

Evaluation of Flowering Plants in a Common Garden Experiment.

InMay2007andin2008,agard nofpot ntialn ctarsourc swas stablish don th groundsofth CoastalR s archandExt nsionC nt r,Biloxi,MS.Eachplant sp ci sorcultivar(Tabl 3.1)was stablish dinfourr plicat dplots,0.5×0.5m.This

ntir gard nwascov r dwithabout5cmofgroundhardwoodmulchtor duc w d populationsanddripirrigationlin s stablish dthroughout.

B ginninginlat May achy ar,plantsw r insp ct dforL. bicolor. Dataw r 

coll ct dwh nmor than2@3waspsw r inth gard n.Numb rsofwaspsonflow ring plantsw r r cord db tw n1100–1200h.Fift nminut obs rvationsw r mad in

achr plicat .Waspslandingonth flow rsw r count d v nifth ydidnotactiv ly

f d.Plantssp ci svisit dandth numb rofforagingwaspswasr cord dand

summariz dov r6din2007and10din2008.Numb rsw r th nanalyz dusing

37  PoisonAnalysistocompar th r lativ numb rofvisitstoc rtainornam ntalflow rs andd t rmin th pr f r nc ofLarra bicolor.Plotswh r plantsw r notflow ring w r  xclud db for th analysis.

Tabl 3.1

HorticulturalPlantsEvaluat dasN ctarSourc sforLarra bicolor

Achillea millefolium Pentas lanceolata F nn l ‘Butt rflyPink’ Agastache urticifolium Pentas lanceolata Verbena ‘Azt c’ ‘Butt rflyWhit ’ Anethum graveolens Pentas lanceolata Verbena bonariensis ‘Butt rflyR d’ Cephalanthus Asclepias ‘SilkyGold’ Verbena ×hybrida occidentlis ‘Blu Lagoon’ Ixora coccinea Asclepias ‘SilkyR d’ Verbena ×hybrida ‘LadyScarl tt’ Lobularia maritime Bouvardia spp Verbena ×hybrida ‘QuartzWat rfall’

. 





38  



Figur 3.3

Th Gard nExp rim ntwithPlantsinBloom



Evaluation of Wasp Longevity in the Laboratory.

Laboratory xp rim ntsw r conduct don11–27August,2007tod t rmin th  long vityofadultL. bicolorprovision dwithflow rs.Th s  xp rim ntsw r  conduct din22.7lit r,plasticcylindricalt star nas(St rilit ,Towns nd,MA,Figur 

3.4).Th s ar nasw r 43.81cmtalltoaccommodat asmallpott dplant.Th bottom of achar awasfill dwithdrysandtoad pthof8cm.An mptyplasticpotwasplac d inth c nt rsothatplantscouldb  asilyadd d.Asingl fi ld@coll ct dwaspwas introduc dto achar na.Inar naswh r flow ringplantsw r abs ntasugardi torno

39  di twasprovid d.Th sugardi twasa0.1%sugarsolutionwhichwasdabb dona

cottonballandplac donaplasticplatt r.Thiswaschang d v ryoth rdaytomak 

sur thatsugarwat rwasavailabl .Waspsurvivalwas valuat ddaily.Th m an

numb rofdayswaspssurviv din achtr atm ntwasanalyz dusinganalysisofvarianc 

(Statistix,AnalyticalSoftwar ,Tallahass ,FL)follow dbyTuk y’sm anss paration proc dur (P <0.05).







Figur 3.4

Ar naforth Long vityT sts

40 

Results

Evaluation of Flowering Plants in a Common Garden Experiment.

Inbothy ars,L. bicolor waspsw r onlyobs rv donflow rsofPentasand

Spermacoce. Allvari ti sofp ntasr gardl ssofflow rcolorw r visit dbyL.

bicolor. Amongth s ,significantlymor waspsvisit dwhit @flow r dp ntasand

Sp rmacoc (Figur 3.5,F=12.09,P <0.0001).Abilityofr cruitingwaspswassimilar

forbothWhit P ntasandSpermacoce.







Figur 3.5

Fi ldT stR sultsofOrnam ntalPlantPr f r nc forLarra bicolor



41 

Laboratory Longevity Assays.

Trial I: Waspsh ldincaptivitywithnofoodsurviv d,onav rag ,1.75dwhich

wasth sam asthos provision dwithflow ringSp rmacoc .Waspsprovision dwith

flow ringWhit P ntasliv d5dlong rthanthos provision dwithSp rmacoc (F=

10.12,P =0.012).Wasplong vityrang dfrom0–8daysinthis xp rim nt.





Figur 3.6

LabTrialI@Choic T stwithNoFoodControl,SpermacoceandPentas



Trial II: Th r w r nosignificantdiff r nc sb tw ntr atm ntsinthis

xp rim ntindicatingthatallthr foodsourc sar comparabl (F=1.1,P =0.39).

42  Wasplong vityrang dfrom2–6daysinthis xp rim nt.Th av rag long vityof mal sandf mal sw r 4.2and4.3d,r sp ctiv ly.



Figur 3.7

LabTrialIIwithSpermacoce,PentasandSugarWat rControl

Discussion

Flow rmorphology,color,orsugarcont ntofth n ctarmay xplainth similar r spons ofwaspstop ntasandSp rmacoc .Sp rmacoc isth primaryn ctarsourc  forL. bicolor waspsinFlorida.Thissp ci sislist dasaw d(Ev r st tal.1996)and num rousvolunt rsofS. verticillata inar asadjac nttoth gard nplothav r quir d

43  ch micalcontrol.Fortunat ly,fi ldchoic t stssugg stthatanornam ntalsp ci s,

P ntas,mayb asuitabl r plac m nt.Th glossall ngthofmal andf mal L. bicolor ar notdiff r ntandroughly qualtoth flow rd pthofS.verticillata (Ar valoand

Frank2005).Inth fi ld xp rim nt,th r wasnodiff r nc innumb rsofwasps r cord donp ntaswithwhit flow rsandSp rmacoc .Flow rmorphology(i. .,siz ) lik lyhaslimit dimportanc sinc individualp ntasflow rsar larg rthanflow rsof

Sp rmacoc .Coloralon do snot xplainpr f r nc aswaspshav b nobs rv d f dingonplantswitharang offlow rcolors(Ar valoandFrank2005).

R sultsoflaboratorytrialsprovid additional vid nc thatPentasiscomparabl  orp rhapsb tt rthanSpermacocer lativ towasplong vity.N ctarisan xc ll nt sourc ofcarbohydrat s(sugars)forins cts.Similarfi ldpr f r nc r s archwith

Pentasandbutt rfli s(Brun r tal.2002)alsosugg ststhatPentashasn ctarvolum or compositionwhichmak sitattractiv ton ctarf dingins cts.Waspflow rsand butt rflyflow rst ndtob sucros rich(Bak randBak r1983).Spermacocehas sucros @dominat dn ctar(H.Frank,unpublish ddata).D p@tub dflow rst ndtohav  sucros richn ctar(Bak randBak r1983)andmay xplainth similarityforPentasand

Spermacoceinr cruitingwasps v nthoughSpermacocehassmallflow rscompar dto

Pentas.

Ev nthoughplantsinth sam familycouldshowsimilariti sinn ctarcont nt, thatn dnotb th cas inlarg famili s(Bak randBak r1983)andthis xplainswhy oth rplantsinth madd rfamilydidnotr cruitth wasp.Thisisindicationthatfloral charact risticslik floralvolatil sorn ctarcompositionwouldb th k ytowasp

44  pr f r nc .Sinc colorvariantsofth sam plantt ndtohav similarn ctarcont nt

(Bak randBak r1983)th abilitytor cruitwaspsbyth oth rcolorsofPentascouldb 

xplain dasafunctionofth n ctarcont nt.Th diff r nc inwaspattractiondu to

colorn dnotb du todiff r nc inn ctarcont nt.

45     

CHAPTER IV

FIRST REPORT OF LARRA BICOLOR (HYMENOPTERA: SPHECIDAE) IN

ALABAMA

Abstract

Larra bicolorisaparasiticwaspintroduc dintoFloridaforbiologicalcontrolof p stmol crick ts.Waspshuntformol crick tsinth pastur sandmanag dturfgrass.

Onc th waspfindsamol crick t,th ychas ittoth surfac andstingsit.Th sting

t mporarilyparalyz sth mol crick t nablingth wasptod positan gg.Th wasp

gghatch sandlarvaf dsasan xt rnalparasit .Th larvaconsum sth mol crick t

th nspinsacocooninth soil.Th r ar 2@3g n rationsofL. bicolor achy ar.Wasps hav spr adthroughoutFloridaandintoth north rnGulfstat ssuchasMississippi wh r L. bicolor w r discov r din2004.Th pr s ntstudywasconduct dtod t rmin  ifL. bicolor waspr s ntongolfcours sinMobil andBaldwinCounti s(south rnmost counti s)inAlabama.Infall2007, ightgolfcours sinth s counti sw r id ntifi d andsurv y dforL. bicolor.Waspsw r obs rv dorcoll ct don4ofth 8golfcours s surv y d.Th discov ryofL. bicolor insouth rnandcoastalAlabamaprovid san w r cordforthissp ci sbutmor importantlyitprovid sn winformationforturfgrass manag rs.On@goingr s archproj ctsar inv stigatingth rol offlow ringplantsin

46  parasitismandsurvivalofL. bicolor.Turfgrassmanag rsandhom own rsinAlabama cannowutiliz th findingsofthisandfutur r s archonbiologicalcontrolofmol  crick ts.

Introduction

Mol crick ts(Orthopt ra:Gryllotalpida :Scapteriscusspp.)ar s riousp stsof warms asonturfgrassandpastur sinth south rnUnit dStat s.Sinc th ir ntryinto

Unit dStat salongth G orgiacoastlin inth  arly1900’s,Scapteriscus mol crick ts hav spr adsouthintoFloridaandw stthroughLouisiana.InMississippiandth  north rnGulfr gion,twosp ci s,S. vicinus andS. borellei,ar pr s ntwh r asth s  twoandS. abbreviatus ar pr s ntinFlorida.Damag fromScapteriscusmol crick ts ismosts v r inth south rnmostar asofGulfstat s(FrankandWalk r2006).Ongolf cours s,ins cticid sar us d xt nsiv lytopr v ntdamag frommol crick ts.For

xampl ,controlmaycostupto$675p rha.Combin d ff ctsofthr natural n mi s,

Ormia depleta(Dipt ra:Tachinida ),Steinernema scapterisci( ntomopathog nic n matod ),andLarra bicolorF.(Hym nopt ra:Sph cida )ar attribut dwitha99% r ductioninmol crick tpopulationsinFlorida(FrankandWalk r2006).



47      Figur 4.1.

a. Larra bicolor(15–20mmlong) isShownH r F dingonFlow rsof Spermacoce verticillata b.StingingaMol Crick t. 

 Larra bicolor (Figur .4.1)isan ctoparasitoidofmol crick tsandhas2to3 g n rationsp rs ason(FrankandSourakov2002).Th biologyand cologyofL. bicolor w r r c ntlyr vi w d(Frank tal.1995)andwillnotb discuss dind tail.

Larra bicolor waspsar blackwithwingsthatar browntoblu andasolidr dabdom n

(Figur .4.1)whichdistinguish sitfromLarra analis F.whichisnativ toMississippi andoth rGulfstat s,andhasablackabdom nwithr djustatth tip(M nk 1992).

B tw n1981–1983,r s arch rscoll ct dL. bicolor waspsfromPu rtoRicoand r l as dth matfiv sit sinFlorida.Followingth s r l as s,waspsonlyb cam 

stablish datth south rnmostr l as sit n arFt.Laud rdal (Frank tal.1995).Inan att mptto stablishpopulationsinnorth rnFlorida,thr sp ci sofwasps,Larra bicolor,L. praedatrix,andL. godmaniw r coll ct dfromBoliviaandr l as dalong withparasitiz dhostsatthr sit sn arGain svill in1988@89(Frank tal.1995).

48  Again,th s r l as sapp ar dunsucc ssfuluntil1993wh nL. bicolor w r obs rv d attackingmol crick tsandf dingonflow rsofSpermacoce verticillata inGain svill .

In2004, s v ralsp cim nsofL. bicolor w r coll ct dfromgolfcours sin coastalMississippi.Larra bicolor curr ntlyiswid spr adinFlorida(Frank tal.1995,

FrankandWalk r2006)andr port dfromsouth rncounti sinMississippiandG orgia

(H ld2005).Th mostnorth rncoll ctionofL. bicolor inMississippiis(30.69°N)

Sauci r,MS(D.W.H ld,unpublish ddata)andmost stablish dpopulationsofL. bicolor inth U.S.occurat≤31°Nlatitud (FrankandWalk r2006).Larra bicolor was int ntionallyr l as dinsouth rnG orgiain2000byW.Hudsonforbiologicalcontrolof mol crick ts(W.Hudson,p rsonalcommunication).Withnor cordsofr l as in

Mississippi,th discov ryofL. bicolor sugg stsnaturalrang  xpansionofthiswasp alongwithitshost(H ld2005).Rang  xpansionfromFloridatoMississippiwould indicat thatL. bicolor mayalsob pr s ntinAlabama.Forthisr ason,w sampl dgolf cours sinth south rnandcoastalar asofAlabamatod t rmin ifandwh r Larra bicolor waspr s nt.Iffound,turfmanag rsinsouthAlabamawouldb n fitfrom knowingL. bicolor ispr s ntandcouldutiliz on@goingr s archto nhanc local populationsandparasitism.

Materials and Methods

Forthissurv y,south rnAlabama(<31°Nlatitud )wasdivid dintothr  r gions;th m troMobil ar a,th  ast rnshor ofMobil Bay,andcoastalAlabama includingGulfShor s.B tw n26S ptand19Oct.2007,golfcours sin achr gion w r sampl dforL. bicolor.On achcours ,th gr nsstafforsup rint nd nts

49  sugg st datl astthr fairwaysinf st dwithmol crick tstosampl .Surv ysw r 

conduct db tw n0800–1400hours.Allobs rv rswalk d,sid bysid ,inalin 

spanningth widthofth fairway.Ev ryobs rv rwalk d achfairwayfromt to

gr n.Particularatt ntionwasgiv ntoar aswithfr shmol crick tdamag .IfL.

bicolor waspsw r obs rv datt mptsw r mad tocoll ctth m.Wh ncaptur d,wasps

w r coll ct dwithn tsth ntransf rr dtocoll ctionbottl sinacool rfortransportto

th laboratory.Ifnotcaptur d,th waspwasnot dasobs rv dbutnotcoll ct dandth 

surv yr sum dtoth  ndofth fairway.

Results and Discussion

Larra bicolor waspsw r foundonatl aston golfcours in achofth thr  g ographicalr gionsinsouthAlabama(Tabl 4.1).Thisr cordisth firstr portofthis b n ficialwaspinAlabama.Itisprobabl thatth populationsofL. bicolor stablish d insouthAlabamahav r sult dfromnaturalrang  xpansionofthiswaspwithinits host’srang (H ld2005).

AdultL. bicolor wasrar lyfoundinallar assurv y donaparticulargolfcours .

Waspsw r mor commoninar asorongolfcours swh r fr shmol crick tdamag  wasmor appar nt.Som golfcours sw r mor aggr ssiv withth irmol crick t manag m ntprogramsandthos cours shadf w rorsmall rar asthatw r damag d.

B caus L. bicolorwaspsar difficulttosampl ,non@d t ctionofwaspsonc rtainsit s duringthissurv yshouldnotb  quat dwithanabs nc ofwaspsonthatcours or g ographicalar a.Inasurv yofgolfcours sincoastalMississippiin2004,H ld(2005)

50  r port dc rtainsit swh r L. bicolorw r pr s ntorabs nt.Sinc thatsurv y,L. bicolor hasb ncoll ct dfromon sit wh r itwasund t ct din2004,and populationsar nowabs ntfromon sit wh r th yw r onc pr s nt(H ldand

Abraham,unpublish ddata).T mporalors asonalabundanc inwasppopulationsis lik lyd t rmin dbyhostabundanc ,pr s nc ofn ctarsourc s(L ppla tal.2007),or surfac @appli dins cticid s.

Tabl 4.1

Numb rsofLarra bicolor R port dfromGolfcours sinSouthAlabama.

Golf course Observed Collected

Metro Mobile (Mobile Co.) SpringHillColl g  9 3 CountryClubofMobil  0 0 Azal aCity 3 1 Eastern side of Mobile Bay (Baldwin Co.) Timb rCr k 0 0 QuailCr k 12 4 Coastal (Gulf Shores and Orange Beach) KivaDun s 0 0 P ninsula 8 0 GolfClubatth Wharf 0 0 

51   

  Figur 4.2  a.AF mal L. bicolor Pr paringtoEnt rth MoundinS archforaMol Crick t.b. Mol Crick tMoundwithHol thatwasCommonlyObs rv donSit swh r L. bicolor Waspsw r Activ . 



Onthr ofth foursit swh r L. bicolor waspsw r found,mol crick t moundswithhol sinth topofth mw r alsoobs rv d(Figur .4.2a,b).Larra bicolor f mal smov alongth grasssurfac s archingformounds.Onc amoundis d t ct d,th soilisant nnat dandth waspmaychoos to nt r.To nt ramound,th  f mal mustburrowthroughth soilatth surfac .Itth nproc dsintoth subt rran an tunn lsins archofahost.Asar sult,mol crick tscommonly xitth moundtoavoid attack.Hol ssimilartoth s ar commonlyobs rv dons v ralsit sinsouth

Mississippiwh r L. bicolor ar pr s nt.Th s hol s,th r for ,mayr sultfrom ith r th wasp nt ringorth mol crick t scapingth moundandmayb apassiv  indicationthatL. bicolor isactiv inthatar a.

52  Th discov ryofL. bicolor insouth rnandcoastalAlabamaprovid san w

r cordforthissp ci sbutmor importantlyitprovid sn winformationforturf

manag rs.On@goingr s archproj ctsinFlorida(H.Frank,p rsonalcommunication)

andAlabamaar inv stigatingth rol offlow ringplantsinparasitismandsurvivalof

L. bicolor.Turfmanag rsinAlabamacannowutiliz th findingsofthisandfutur  r s archonbiologicalcontrolofmol crick ts.

53 

CHAPTER V

CONCLUSIONS

D t ctionofLarra bicolorinMississippiin2004indicat dthatth wasp

xpand ditsrang fromFloridawithoutanyhumanint rf r nc .Oursubs qu nt d t ctionofL. bicolor inAlabamasupportsthisconc ptofnaturalrang  xpansion.In som Alabamasit s,w obs rv dgr at rnumb rsofwaspsthanwhatar s ninon  locationinMississippi,whichsugg stpopulationsmayhav first stablish dinAlabama.

On ofth r asonsattribut dtoth succ ssofth wasp stablishm ntinFlorida hasb nth availabilityofitsn ctarsourc Spermacoce verticillata whichisaw din south rnturf.Fi ldandlabstudi sw conduct dindicat thatPentascouldsustainth  waspforlong rtim sthanSpermocace.Thisprovid sanoth rr asontoinclud Pentas inourlandscap atl astwh r mol crick tsar aprobl m.

S asonalactivityinth north rngulfr gionis noughfor2@3g n rations,and willb actingonasingl g n rationofmol crick tsthat m rg inay ar.Th di l activitythoughwasmor int r sting,wh nitshow dtwodistinctpatt rns,wh nth y sporadicallyapp ar donth n ctarsourc sduringsumm randwh nth yhadap ak activityp riodinth fallwh nth t mp ratur sr ach dth maximuminth dayb for  th iractivityagainc as daroundsuns t.Th s obs rvationsindicat thatth activityof th waspsisd p nd ntonacombinationofsunris ,suns ttimingsandt mp ratur s.

54  Withth informationthisstudyprovid s,w ar b tt r quipp dtoutiliz th  s rvic sofLarra bicolorasabiocontrolag ntasw knowthatthatth yar availabl in south rnpartsofMississippiandAlabama.W knowthatPentascansubstitut 

Spermacoceasan ctarsourc andwithknowl dg aboutitsdailyands asonalactivity,

w couldtim ourins cticid applicationslat rinth day,and v nr duc partofitto

low rth costsofcontrolandalsotoaugm ntwasppopulations.

55 

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