The Pennsylvania State University The Graduate School College of Agricultural Sciences DAILY BEHAVIOR AND TRAP CROPPING OF THE BROWN MARMORATED STINK BUG (Halyomorpha halys Stål) IN PENNSYLVANIA AGRICULTURAL SYSTEMS A Thesis in Entomology by Deonna Soergel 2014 Deonna Soergel Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Science August 2014 The thesis of Deonna Soergel was reviewed and approved* by the following: Grzegorz Krawczyk Extension Tree Fruit Entomologist and Research Associate Professor Thesis Adviser Shelby Fleischer Professor of Entomology Nancy Ostiguy Associate Professor of Entomology Edwin Rajotte Professor of Entomology IPM Coordinator and INTAD joint faculty Gary Felton Professor of Entomology Head of the Department of Entomology *Signatures are on file in the Graduate School iii ABSTRACT Invasive species can cause billions of dollars in economic damage every year. The brown marmorated stink bug, Halyomorpha halys, is a relatively new invasive pest in the United States, and in recent years has become a serious agricultural issue. Fruits, vegetables, legumes, and ornamental plants are all part of a wide host range; in the mid-Atlantic United States, H. halys has already caused millions of dollars in documented damage. Most current control strategies of H. halys involve the use of chemical applications to protect crops, and have disrupted Integrated Pest Management (IPM) systems. In order to protect IPM management strategies in Pennsylvania, I evaluated H. halys activity levels in the field and the laboratory. I also evaluated feeding preferences of H. halys between peppers and sunflowers, and hypothetical implications of H. halys invasions in other countries. I began by looking at diurnal and nocturnal behavior of H. halys adults and nymphs in fruit orchard arenas placed on apple, peach, and nectarine tree limbs. From this research, I found a general pattern of increased activity during the evening hours. To better explore this pattern and the driving factor behind it, I placed H. halys in laboratory growth chambers and monitored them during 24-hour cycles. Diel patterns emerged in keeping with the field experiment (increased activity later in the evening), which persisted in completely dark conditions, indicating that the activity patterns were linked to a circadian rhythm. In order to determine if there is a plant preference between pepper and sunflower crops, I planted pepper fields surrounded by sunflower crops, thereby creating a trap cropping setup. The attractiveness of the sunflowers was sufficiently greater to make it a potential trap crop, although more studies need to be completed to provide recommendations for a season-long protection of vegetables. iv In addition to these field and laboratory components, a hypothetical invasive species awareness program was created for Belgrade, Serbia. This was based upon surveys and a focus group questionnaire that was presented to several Serbian scientists, farmers, and agricultural consultants about the importance of invasive insect awareness in their country. v TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES ............................................................................................................ viii LIST OF TABLES .............................................................................................................. xi ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................................................................................ xiv Chapter 1 Introduction/Literature Review........................................................................... 1 A new invasive pest species ......................................................................................... 1 Possible economic impact of invasive species .............................................................. 2 H. halys life history ..................................................................................................... 2 Nomenclature ...................................................................................................... 2 Distribution.......................................................................................................... 3 Feeding preferences ............................................................................................. 4 Feeding characteristics ......................................................................................... 6 H. halys biology .......................................................................................................... 8 Integrated pest management (IPM) .............................................................................. 11 Current management ................................................................................................... 12 Monitoring ........................................................................................................... 13 Biological control ................................................................................................ 14 Thesis objectives ......................................................................................................... 14 References................................................................................................................... 16 Chapter 2 Diurnal and nocturnal behavior of H. halys in fruit orchard arenas ...................... 26 Introduction ................................................................................................................. 26 Materials and methods ................................................................................................. 27 Orchard sites ........................................................................................................ 27 Behavioral sleeves ............................................................................................... 28 Insects ................................................................................................................. 28 Observation periods ............................................................................................. 29 Behaviors observed .............................................................................................. 30 Analysis ............................................................................................................... 30 Results ........................................................................................................................ 31 2011 Season ......................................................................................................... 31 2012 Season ......................................................................................................... 32 Discussion ................................................................................................................... 33 References................................................................................................................... 36 Chapter 3 Halyomorpha halys diel activity patterns and circadian rhythm .......................... 45 Introduction ................................................................................................................. 45 Materials and methods ................................................................................................. 46 Colony ................................................................................................................. 46 Behavior arenas ................................................................................................... 47 vi Observation periods ............................................................................................. 47 Behaviors observed .............................................................................................. 48 Analysis ............................................................................................................... 48 Results ........................................................................................................................ 49 Diel periodicity .................................................................................................... 49 Circadian rhythm ................................................................................................. 50 Discussion ................................................................................................................... 50 References................................................................................................................... 53 Chapter 4 Sunflowers as a potential trap crop of Halyomorpha halys in pepper fields ......... 68 Introduction ................................................................................................................. 68 Materials and methods ................................................................................................. 71 Field site .............................................................................................................. 71 Data collection ..................................................................................................... 72 Analysis ............................................................................................................... 73 Results ........................................................................................................................ 75 Cumulative observation of H. halys ...................................................................... 75 Seasonal observations