The Influence of Marking Methods on Mobility, Survivorship, and Field Recovery of Halyomorpha halys (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) Adults and Nymphs

Abstract

Halyomorpha halys (Stål), the brown marmorated stink bug, is an invasive and highly polyphagous insect that has caused serious economic injury to specialty and row crops in the United States and Europe. Here, we evaluated the effects of marking adult and nymphal H. halys with four different colors of fluorescent powder (Blaze Orange, Corona Pink, Horizon Blue, and Signal Green) on mobility and survivorship in laboratory bioassays. Adults and nymphs were marked using liquified fluorescent powder solutions and allowed to dry prior to bioassay. The presence of the marking solution had no significant effects on adult or nymphal mobility, adult survivorship, nymphal development, or adult flight capacity. We also evaluated the persistence of neon marker applied to the pronotum of H. halys adults and found this technique remained detectable for 2 wk under field conditions. Although both marking techniques are inexpensive, persist for ≥1 wk, and do not affect mortality, the neon marker method is more time-consuming, taking ~12 times longer to mark 50 adult H. halys compared with the liquified fluorescent powders. Thus, we would recommend using fluorescent powders for large-scale mark-release-recapture studies.

Horizontal and vertical dispersal capacity and effects of fluorescent marking on Lycorma delicatula nymphs and adults

“…Marking L. delicatula with fluorescent powders had no effect on either the mobility or survivorship of nymphs and adults. This reflects what has been observed with other species such as H. halys (Kirkpatrick et al, 2019a, 2020) and indicates this may be a good method for studying dispersal and host use patterns. Harmonic radar tracking is another well‐utilized procedure for evaluating insect movement within a landscape (Osborne et al, 1999; Morrison et al, 2016; Zhang et al, 2020).…”

“…Lycorma delicatula nymphs and adults were marked with individual colors of fluorescent powder. The insects were prepared as per previous studies (Kirkpatrick et al, 2019a, 2020). Four individual colors of fluorescent powders (Day‐GLO Color, Cleveland, OH, USA) were evaluated: horizon blue (#2141), signal green (#1948), aurora pink (#2007), blaze orange (#1874), and clean water.…”

Behavioral Effects and Retention of Protein Immunomarkers on Plum Curculio Conotrachelus nenuphar (Coleoptera: Curculionidae)

“…Overall, our data are consistent with the results of these experiments regarding retention time of the marker, but these studies did not test for behavioral differences between marked and unmarked individuals. Our chosen behavioral measurements of speed, climbing height, and total distance moved laterally are useful proxies for movement behavior when comparing effects of marking materials, or comparing marked and unmarked insects ( Kirkpatrick et al 2020 ). Additionally, these are important measurements for C. nenuphar in particular, as a large share of their dispersal is achieved by walking from tree to tree, then climbing the trunk of a new host.…”

Seasonal Dynamics and Damage of Halyomorpha halys in Italian Vineyards

“…In Europe, this pest can undergo 1–2 generations per year, mostly in summer, and there is a coexistence of various developmental stages that typically peak in numbers in August–September [ 13 ]. During its period of activity, H. halys is capable of long-distance movements, with adults that can disperse several kilometers by flying [ 14 , 15 ], and nymphs that can walk between plots at farm scale [ 16 ]. Halyomorpha halys is a pest known to take advantage of mixed-host diets, and these feeding habits can increase nymphal survivorship and hasten developmental duration [ 11 , 17 ].…”