Quality control applications for recovering an inbred colony of Bagrada hilaris (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae).

The invasive stink bug, Bagrada hilaris (Burmeister), recently became established in the southwestern United States and has become a major pest of broccoli and other cole crops. Due to concerns about its possible establishment in Florida, a colony of this pest was maintained in quarantine to conduct research on its environmental requirements. The colony was reared reliably with approximately 300 adults per generation but began to decline in generation 16.

Use of Pyriproxyfen to Induce Oogenesis in Diapausing (Heteroptera: Plataspidae), and Evaluation of Pyriproxyfen-Induced Eggs for Rearing the Parasitoid (Hymenoptera: Scelionidae).

The mass rearing of hymenopteran egg parasitoids requires an abundant supply of host eggs. The onset of reproductive diapause and subsequent decline in egg production poses a challenge for parasitoid rearing when using host colonies augmented by field-collected insects. We investigated the application of pyriproxyfen, a juvenile hormone analog, to induce oviposition in diapausing adult kudzu bugs, (Fabricius) (Heteroptera: Plataspidae), and the use of eggs produced by pyriproxyfen-treated kudzu bugs to rear the egg parasitoid, (Dodd) (Hymenoptera: Scelionidae).

Wireworm (Coleoptera: Elateridae) Species Composition and Management in Sweet Potato Grown in North Florida Using Chemical Insecticides and Entomopathogenic Nematodes.

Wireworms are immature stages of click beetles (Coleoptera: Elateridae) and are considered a serious threat to sweet potato production in the southern United States. The major wireworm species collected in North Florida sweet potato fields in 2017 and 2018 were Conoderus scissus, C. rudis, C.

Trap-Based Economic Injury Levels and Thresholds for Euschistus servus (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) in Florida Peach Orchards.

Populations of the brown stink bug, Euschistus servus (Say), in Florida peach orchards were monitored during the 2017 and 2018 growing seasons using yellow pheromone-baited pyramid traps. Peaches were evaluated at harvest for the presence of stink bug injury. A relationship between E.

Effect of Ephestia kuehniella (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) Larval Diet on Egg Quality and Parasitism by Trichogramma brassicae (Hymenoptera: Trichogrammatidae).

Trichogramma spp., among the most common parasitoids used for augmentation biological control, often are mass-reared on eggs of the Mediterranean flour moth, Ephestia kuehniella (Zeller). To evaluate removal of nutritional components from the E.

Tritrophic Interactions of Cucumber Cultivar, Aphis gossypii (Hemiptera: Aphididae), and Its Predator Hippodamia variegata (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae).

The melon aphid, Aphis gossypii Glover, is a cosmopolitan pest that infests and damages a wide range of crop plants, especially cucurbits. It is a host of the coccinellid predator, Hippodamia variegata (Goeze), that has the potential to suppress the pest on leaves of cucumber plants grown in greenhouses. Melon aphids were reared on either Storm or Khasib cucumber cultivars to determine whether there would be a difference in their development and reproduction.

History of the International Organization for Biological Control Global Working Group on Mass Rearing and Quality Assurance.

The International Organization for Biological Control Global Working Group on Mass Rearing and Quality Assurance (MRQA) was established in 1980 as the Working Group on Quality Control (WGQC) to assure success of insect mass rearing for pest management that was being developed in the 1950s and 1960s. Due mostly to the efforts of WGQC, quality control became institutionalized in several insect mass rearing facilities during the 1980s. After addressing autocidal control programs, the WGQC concentrated on entomophagous insects, especially testing the quality of commercial biological control products.

Life Table Parameters and Oviposition Preference of Plutella xylostella (Lepidoptera: Plutellidae) on Six Brassicaceous Crop Plants.

The oviposition preferences and larval development of the diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella (L.), were evaluated in the laboratory on canola, Brassica napus L. and five Brassica oleracea L.

Linear Dispersal of the Filth Fly Parasitoid Spalangia cameroni (Hymenoptera: Pteromalidae) and Parasitism of Hosts at Increasing Distances.

Release of parasitic wasps (Hymenoptera: Pteromalidae) as biological control agents for house flies and stable flies in livestock confinements has had variable success. In part, this may reflect a lack of knowledge regarding the optimal distance to be used between parasitoid release stations. In the current study, we assessed the effect of linear distance on host parasitism by the wasp Spalangia cameroni Perkins.

Post-hire asthma among insect-rearing workers.

Objective: To evaluate the incidence of post-hire asthma (PHA) among insect-rearing workers, defined as asthma, the symptoms of which appeared after hire at the current workplace.

Methods: We surveyed the health of workers at three insect-rearing facilities and an associated office facility. We calculated the incidence and estimated hazard ratios for PHA.