Zelus renardii (Hemiptera Reduviidae) a leafhopper assassin bug candidate for adult Philaenus spumarius biocontrol Valdete Sefa PhD Student I authorize the use and reproduction of any content, data and digital images in this presentation by CIHEAM, or anyone authorized by CIHEAM 1 Topic’s - and presentation Introduction of Xylella • Quarantine pathogen (EPPO A2 list) Evidences fastidiosa pauca ST53 • in Apulia Rapid invasion by insect vectors for Zelus • Philaenus spumarius main vector of renardii Encounter with Xylella fastidiosa pauca ST53 (Zr) indigenous vectors: (Saponari et al., 2014) Philaenus spumarius, attitude to Neophilaenus campestris & Philaenus italosignus prey adult Philaenus spumarius (vectors) control (Salerno et al., 2017) Zr a NEC (Natural Enemies Complex) acclimated Induction of OQDS (Saponari et al., 2013) candidate as biocontrol component in Xf vector IPM I authorize the use and reproduction of any content, data and digital images in this presentation by CIHEAM, or anyone authorized by CIHEAM 2 Topic’s - and presentation Z. renardii laboratory Z. renardii accepts P. Breeding of Z. renardii Breeding of Z. renardii breeding: spumarius and other on liquid or jellified on biological micro- bionomic and cannibalism mainly Hemipteran preys liver based diet capsulated diet I authorize the use and reproduction of any content, data and digital images in this presentation by CIHEAM, or anyone authorized by CIHEAM 3 Main Results Z. renardii findings in Bari (Italy). Observation The first breeding 1st year attempts • Long-living adults • Easy to breed on different insects • One egg cluster per week • Adult vs nymphs cannibalism 2nd year (320 replications) gave the following information: • Zelus “glues” the prey by forelegs and promptly pierces them by stylets; Mean total time (minutes) taken for the behaviour of Zr preying Ps. • Saliva (?) causes the sudden death of the prey in seconds; • Mean time to attack 42.5 min (SD 26.6) while, feeding time was 30.7min (SD 7.9). • Mean time of attack + mean feeding time/ per predation was about 73 min. 3st year • Successful breeding of Zelus with artificial diet • Complete life cycle from ‘egg to egg’ in laboratory • Feeding of Zelus in micro- capsulate artificial diet Cornara et al., 2016 Total time activity for attack and feeding on all Ps of Zrf and Zrlb I authorize the use and reproduction of any content, data and digital images in this presentation by CIHEAM, or anyone authorized by CIHEAM 4 Impact and Prospect • Our laboratory experiences define the killing bug as manageable • We have evidences to propose Zr as biocontrol component in Xf vector IPM • Leafhopper assassin bug mass rearing on artificial diets and adult field mass release will contribute to the effectiveness of the biological control action for the adult vector I authorize the use and reproduction of any content, data and digital images in this presentation by CIHEAM, or anyone authorized by CIHEAM 5 Thank You Get in Touch Via ceglie 9, Valenzano (BA) Valdete Sefa [email protected] +393407864290 .