Use of substrate-borne vibrational signals to attract the Brown Marmorated Stink Bug, Halyomorpha halys

• Published in: Journal of pest science Vol. 90; no. 4; pp. 1219 - 1229
• Main Authors: Mazzoni, Valerio, Polajnar, Jernej, Baldini, Marta, Rossi Stacconi, Marco Valerio, Anfora, Gianfranco, Guidetti, Roberto, Maistrello, Lara
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer Berlin Heidelberg 01-09-2017; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Acoustics; Agriculture; Agronomy; Arenas; Attraction; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Chemical communication; Crop damage; Damage; Ecology; Entomology; Forestry; Halyomorpha halys; Insects; Invasive insects; Life Sciences; Males; Mating; Original Paper; Pest control; Pests; Pheromone traps; Plant Pathology; Plant Sciences; Substrates; Vibratory communication; Biotremology; Behavioral bioassays; Integrated pest management; Hemiptera; Acoustic traps
• ISSN: 1612-4758; 1612-4766
• DOI: 10.1007/s10340-017-0862-z

Despite the increasing number of studies on the use of acoustic stimuli to control agricultural pests, this approach is still theoretical. Many insect pests, in particular hemipterans, use vibrational signals for mating communication, and therefore the application of a control strategy based on acoustic interference is a promising option. The Brown Marmorated Stink Bug,
Halyomorpha halys
, is causing severe economic damage to many crops in the USA and Italy. We tested a female vibrational signal, female signal 2 (FS2), to attract males in different settings, such as natural substrates, arenas and a cage representing an acoustic trap. We used video-tracking analysis and described the vibrational amplitude field around the individuals to study the male behavior. We found that FS2 can attract more than 50% of males to the source point and has a strong “loitering” effect on searching males that tend to remain in the stimulated area. We concluded that FS2 exhibits good attractiveness to
H. halys
males and that its potential use as a tool integrated into the currently existing pheromone traps should be tested in the field.