Results from the monitoring efforts over the next year will help in making management decisions regarding which species of parasitoid should be released when and where.” Hoddle says, “Our results show no unexpected harm to native non-target species, clearing the path for biological control of this pest. In this way egg parasites can effectively reduce the number of sharpshooters that emerge during any given breeding cycle. The developing wasps eat the contents of sharpshooter eggs before pupating and then chew circular holes through the sharpshooter eggshell to get out and disperse. Parasitic wasps seek out sharpshooter eggs and lay their own eggs inside them. “The ideal agent should establish stable populations in the field and reduce pest numbers to nondamaging levels without affecting nontarget organisms.” “Selecting the right organisms to use as natural enemies is critical to the success of biological control efforts and for ensuring safety to other organisms,” explains Hoddle. Parasitoids from Argentina are also being evaluated in quarantine but have not yet been released.Įntomologist Mark Hoddle from UC Riverside and his research team screened two species of wasps to see if they attack native California sharpshooter species and whether these exotic GWSS parasitoids would harm the parasitoids of native sharpshooters. Four parasitoids from the southeastern United States have been released and appear to be establishing in southern California. Department of Agriculture, and the California Department of Food and Agriculture have introduced parasitic wasps for the biological control of GWSS. Researchers from the University of California, the U.S. The pest also feeds and reproduces on a wide range of trees in southern California including, eucalyptus, sycamores, peaches, pears, and coast live oaks.
Crepe myrtle and sumac are especially preferred. The insect occurs in unusually high numbers in citrus and on a variety of woody ornamentals. GWSS is a serious threat to California vineyards because it moves faster and flies greater distances into vineyards than the other species of native California sharpshooters. GWSS has been established in southern California since 1990 arriving from either Florida or Texas and has also successfully invaded French Polynesia, Hawaii, and Easter Island. Glassy-winged and blue-green sharpshooter adults on a grape leaf.
Wasp sharpshooter how to#
In a new study, scientists have discovered how to reduce the number of sharpshooters without harming non-target organisms, progress that moves one step closer to a solution in the fight against this prolific pest. Since the early ‘90s, grape growers in Riverside and San Diego counties have battled the glassy-winged sharpshooter (GWSS), an insect that spreads Pierce’s disease and causes millions in damages to vineyards. JParasitic wasps could control glassy-winged sharpshooters Printer-friendly version In the News More news
0 kommentar(er)
