Host plants and their role in the ecology of the fruitspotting bugs Amblypelta nitida Stål and Amblypelta lutescens lutescens (Distant) (Hemiptera: Coreidae)

Abstract

An expanded host list is given for AmhI.ypeltu rriiiclcr (frui tspotting bug) and Aiiib/.lp,/t(i 1ritcd.vtptt.v Iutrsccris (banana-spotting bug) in Australia. These are compared with thosc cxtracted froti1 the literature for Airiblj*pdtii imwpliuga China, Ainhlypdtrr tiirohromc~e Brown. . 4 t d~I~p e~l t t i 1rrtp.sc.clr.s pc/piwrsis Brown, and Amblypel[u hrcw?ornis Brown. Despite niany new additions to the list 01' known hosts for A . niti&i and A . 1. lutescerzs, Australian native plant species are relatively poorly represented.Rainforest species are thought to be important refugia and breeding hosts for the bugs since orchards located adjacent to such vegetation are often severely damaged. The broad host r u n g of severnl Artih/jywlftr spp. is discussed with respect to the bugs' pest status and the role of alternativc hosts a s breeding sites for fruitspotting bugs which migrate into commercial orchards. commercial orchards, damage, fruit, natural habitat, nuts. Key wordsThis seems to have occurred because of recent increases in both the variety of fruit and nut species cultivated and the area planted to them. There is also an increased iiwareness by growers that the bugs causc' significant d~l u g e to

Fruitspotting bugs, Amblypelta nitida Stål and A. lutescens lutescens Distant (Hemiptera: Coreidae): a review of the potential for integrated management practices

“…Brown and Ghauri () described A. madangana from Papua New Guinea, and Ghauri () described a further two species, A. bukharii and A. danishi , from Papua New Guinea and West Papua, respectively. Within the genus, four species and two subspecies are currently considered to be of economic importance: A. cocophaga China, A. theobromae Brown, A. l. lutescens Distant, A. lutescens papuensis Brown, A. bilineata Stål, and A. nitida Stål (Ironside ; Smith ; Bigger ; Waite & Huwer ; Mille & Mademba‐Sy ) (Table ).…”

“…In addition to the affected crop species, fruitspotting bugs have been recorded on numerous other native and exotic plant species. Waite and Huwer () present an extensive list of plants from which observations of fruitspotting bugs have been made and categorise plants as ‘breeding’ or ‘feeding’ hosts. These categories are based on the life stages of fruitspotting bug found on the plant and their feeding behaviour.…”

“…Further research is needed to clarify which of the plants listed by Waite and Huwer () are indeed primary hosts, as opposed to incidental hosts, of A. nitida and A. l. lutescens . Distinctions can be made between host plants for suitability for given insect herbivores based on relative incidence rates of the herbivores on each host, their affinity for oviposition on each plant, and comparisons of nymph survival and performance (Rajapakse & Walter ; Manners & Walter ).…”

Ecology of the fruit spotting bug, Amblypelta lutescens lutescens Distant (Hemiptera: Coreidae) in cashew plantations, with particular reference to the potential for its biological control

“…The species is distributed widely across northern Australia, Gulf of Papua, Torres Strait and Timor (Brown 1958a; Ghauri 1984). Nymphs and adults feed on flushing shoots and developing fruits of a wide range of tree crops of economic importance (Brimblecombe 1948; Brown 1958b; Smith 1973; Ironside 1978; Smith 1985; Waite 1990; Waite & Huwer 1998), causing significant losses in production. Since 1990, fruit spotting bug has been one of the main insect pests of several pilot cashew plantations established in northern Australia in the mid‐1980s (Houston & Malipatil 1991; Strickland & Williams 1993; Peng et al .…”

Biological control of the fruit‐spotting bug Amblypelta lutescens using weaver ants Oecophylla smaragdina on African mahoganies in Australia

“…In the present study, we found that the introduced African mahogany is another major host of the fruit-spotting bug A. lutescens. Waite and Huwer (1998) reviewed a range of hosts of fruit-spotting bugs in Australia, and showed that A. lutescens had 93 host plants, of which African mahogany K. senegalensis was not recorded.…”