Monday, November 15, 2004
0063

Mating behavior of the consperse stink bug, Euschistus conspersus

Christian H. Krupke, ckrupke@wsu.edu, Vincent P. Jones, vjones@tsrec.wsu.edu, and Jay F. Brunner, jfb@wsu.edu. Washington State University, Tree Fruit Research and Extension Center, 1100 North Western Ave, Wenatchee, WA

The consperse stink bug, Euschistus conspersus Uhler, has emerged as an important pest of pome fruit production in Washington state. My research has focused upon quantifying the behavioral response of this insect to its aggregation pheromone, methyl (2E,4Z)-decadienoate, in an attempt to develop pheromone-based monitoring or management systems. I describe research investigating the pheromone-mediated aggregation behavior in E. conspersus in the field and describe the subsequent development of a detailed diel activity profile for this insect. E. conspersus aggregations peak at dusk, with mating occurring primarily at night. Sex ratios were equal in aggregations and both sexes were found to be polygamous, mating on successive nights but with different partners. Laboratory experiments revealed that males transfer a substantial proportion of their body weight during mating. The implications of these findings for mating dynamics are discussed.


Species 1: Hemiptera Pentatomidae Euschistus conspersus (Consperse stink bug)
Keywords: Mating behavior