Volume 39 - December 2007 : Hawaiian Entomological Society

Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://hdl.handle.net/10125/359

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Reports from the 2005 Centennial Conference of the Hawaiian Entomological Society
(Hawaiian Entomological Society, 2007-12) Wright, Mark G.; Rubinoff, Daniel; Almeida, Rodrigo P.P.; Wright, Mark
Exploits of some famous entomologists of the Hawaiian Entomological Society.
(Hawaiian Entomological Society, 2007-12) Easton, Emmett R.
Efficacy of localized chemical treatments for Cryptotermes brevis (Isoptera: Kalotermitidae) in naturally infested lumber.
(Hawaiian Entomological Society, 2007-12) Woodrow, R Joseph; Grace, J Kenneth
Localized injection of insecticides into termite galleries in infested wood represents an alternative to whole-structure fumigation for drywood termite control. The efficacy of this method is limited, however, by the use of repellant insecticides and the difficulty of locating drywood termite colonies. The present study addressed both issues by the use of an experimental acoustic emissions (AE) detector to assist in location of termite infestations in naturally infested shipping pallets, and application of the non-repellant insecticide spinosad (Dow AgroSciences). Chlorpyrifos 0.5% aerosol, 15% aqueous disodium octaborate tetrahydrate (DOT), resmethrin 0.25% aerosol, distilled water (control) and two treatments of 0.5% spinosad suspension concentrate (one with the injection site based on visual evidence and the other on acoustic evidence) were injected into boards in hardwood shipping pallets naturally infested with the drywood termite Cryptotermes brevis Walker. Termite mortality was greatest with spinosad treatments, although variability was high due to the continued difficulty of identifying and treating all separate areas of infestation in the boards.
Residential perimeter treatment trials in Hawaii with Thiamethoxam, Termidor, and Premise.
(Hawaiian Entomological Society, 2007-12) Yates, Julian R. III
Pre-1988 strategies for termiticide treatment of soil to prevent subterranean termite infestation in residential structures included application of organochlorine insecticides beneath concrete slabs through drilled holes at more than 2-foot intervals along the interior of perimeter and dividing walls. Post-1988 soil termiticides included organophosphates and pyrethroids. These less forgiving insecticides forced the pest control industry to change their treatment methods because of numerous call-backs that required re-treatments. Drill hole spacing through concrete slabs decreased to 1-foot intervals and exterior perimeter treatments were added to the management regime. With the advent of new non-repellent soil treatment termiticides, chemical manufacturers of these insecticides have devised a less intrusive treatment protocol that includes the remedial treatment of all known live infestations within the structure and a perimeter-only treatment of soil. For post-on-pier construction the perimeter of all piers is included in the treatment strategy. Results of field trials with three non-repellent termiticides (Thiamethoxam, Termidor, and Premise) are described.
Bugs in bugs: the microbial diversity of the termite gut.
(Hawaiian Entomological Society, 2007-12) Husseneder, Claudia; Wise, Billy R.; Higashiguchi, Dennis T.
The Formosan subterranean termite, Coptotermes formosanus Shiraki (Isoptera: Rhinotermitidae), is dependent on its microbial gut community. The gut flora consists of three species of protists and an unknown number of bacteria species, which play a key role in physiology, nutrition and gut ecology of the termite host. Because C. formosanus depends on its gut flora for survival, alternative termite control strategies could be devised using the gut flora of termites as tools and targets for termite control. However, before such strategies can be developed, detailed knowledge about the microbial diversity in the termite gut is sorely needed. In this study, we used culture-independent 16S rRNA gene sequencing in conjunction with classical culture methods to describe the microbial diversity in the gut of C. formosanus.
Behavioral response of the Formosan subterranean termite to borate-treated wood.
(Hawaiian Entomological Society, 2007-12) Campora, Cory E.; Grace, J Kenneth
Foragers of the Formosan subterranean termite, Coptotermes formosanus Shiraki, were allowed to tunnel in two dimensional, sand filled arenas containing Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii [Mirb.] Franco) wafers pressure treated with disodium octaborate tetrahydrate (DOT) to an average retention of 1.77% BAE on one side of each arena, and untreated wafers of Douglas-fir on the other side. Arenas were established both in the laboratory and in the field. Initial tunnel formation was unaffected by the presence of borate-treated wood. Avoidance of borate-treated wood developed after ca. 3–5 days. Termites did not avoid borate-treated wood as a result of necrophobic behavior. Termite responses when the locations of the treated and untreated wafers were switched within the arenas indicated that the delayed avoidance was related to the location of the treated wood rather than to recognition of the chemical treatment.
Community education for better termite control in Hawaii.
(Hawaiian Entomological Society, 2007-12) Grace, J Kenneth; Yates, Julian R. III; Aihara-Sasaki, Maria; Lillich, Georgina
We describe a program initiated in fall 2001 in Hawaii’s public schools to increase both student and community awareness and knowledge of effective termite prevention and management. Program staff spend approximately 15 hours in the classroom, with an additional 15 hours of teacher follow-up; and implement progressively more sophisticated curricula tailored to each grade level and meeting state standards for science instruction, culminating in an activity in which students share their knowledge with the greater community. Teachers may earn professional development credits by participation in a workshop consisting of 20 hours of training and 45 hours of classroom implementation. As of spring 2005, over 50 teachers in over 30 schools had participated in the program, directly addressing over 2000 public school students. Adult education classes are also offered in conjunction with the classroom program, and attendance at these classes has increased four-fold since inception of the program. Steps to create a sustainable statewide program are described.
Rearing Fopius arisanus (Sonan) (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) in Mediterranean fruit fly (Diptera: Tephritidae).
(Hawaiian Entomological Society, 2007-12) Harris, Ernest J.; Bautista, Renato C.; Vargas, Roger I.; Jang, Eric B.
In Hawaii, the egg-larval parasitoid Fopius (=Biosteres) arisanus (Sonan)(= Opius oophilus Fullaway) (Hymenotera: Braconidae) is the most effective parasitoid of its preferred host the oriental fruit fly, Bactrocera dorsalis Hendel (Diptera: Tephritidae). Other Hymenopterous parasitoid species introduced into Hawaii still exist but vary considerably in their distribution and effectiveness as biological control agents. Based on field observations of F. arisanus parasitizing medfly in coffee and oriental fruit fly in guava, we postulated that a strain of F. arisanus could be selected in the laboratory to be reared exclusively on medfly. We report the results of these studies.
Fruit flies and their impact on agriculture in Hawaii.
(Hawaiian Entomological Society, 2007-12) Jang, Eric B.
Tephritid fruit flies were among the early invasive insects to the Hawaiian Islands. These agricultural pests have had a major impact on Hawaii’s agriculture, reducing the types, quantities and quality of agricultural products grown on the islands, increasing pesticide use and reducing trade of fruit fly host products. Reduction in production of both sugar cane and pineapple, two non-fruit fly host crops over the last 10–15 years has renewed interest in diversified agriculture in the state and prompted renewed interest in fruit fly control programs statewide. Over the last 90 years, USDA has had a major research role in defining, discovering and implementing technology to detect and control these pests in Hawaii, the U.S. mainland and worldwide. The Hawaii Areawide fruit fly integrated pest management program (HAW-FLYPM), a USDA-ARS funded partnership between ARS, University of Hawaii and Hawaii State Department of Agriculture has recently demonstrated that these pest fruit flies could be controlled using IPM technologies. The success of the program has prompted state and federal agencies to reconsider if Hawaii could further expand their diversified agriculture using such an approach.
Population biology and prospects for suppression of the solanaceous fruit fly, Bactrocera latifrons (Diptera: Tephritidae).
(Hawaiian Entomological Society, 2007-12) McQuate, Grant T.; Bokonon-Ganta, Aimé H.; Peck, Steven L.
Bactrocera latifrons (Hendel) is a tephritid fruit fly native to South and Southeast Asia. First detected in Hawaii in 1983, it primarily infests fruits of solanaceous plants but has also been found to infest fruits of some species of cucurbitaceous plants in Hawaii. Because it has been known in Hawaii for a much shorter period of time than the other three introduced tephritid fruit flies of economic importance, there has been much less opportunity to study its basic biology and ecology. One area not yet sufficiently understood is the population ecology of this species. Here, we report on the population levels of B. latifrons as they relate to turkeyberry (Solanum torvum Sw) phenology in a cattle pasture with abundant turkeyberry patches in the vicinity of Haiku, Maui.
Alien invaders in Hawaii: prospects for remediation using biological control.
(Hawaiian Entomological Society, 2007-12) Messing, Russell H.
In this short paper I will review both the positive and negative factors affecting the prospects for biological control in Hawaii, and will give some concrete recommendations for improving these prospects given intelligent prioritization of available funding.
Melon fly (Diptera: Tephritidae) genetic sexing: all-male sterile fly releases in Hawaii.
(Hawaiian Entomological Society, 2007-12) McInnis, D.; Leblanc, L.; Mau, R.
The first practical genetic sexing strain for the melon fly, Bactrocera cucurbitae, developed in Hawaii was mass-reared and released as sterile males into wild fly populations. Significant improvements in the field quality of sterile males were made with the pupal color strain in which males can be separated from females on the basis of pupal coloration using photoelectric sorting machines. Earlier, quality control tests indicated that the strain mass-rears adequately, and is very competitive with wild flies based on field cage studies of mating ability and survival. Open field studies were conducted between 2002 and 2004 on three Hawaiian islands in increasingly larger test areas, and with increasing numbers of sterile males released (up to 1,500,000/wk). Results indicated that the sexing strain significantly impacted the wild population, causing high, induced sterility up to ca. 75% in both residential and commercial vegetable growing areas of Hawaii. The field tests have shown that the sexing strain is worthy of mass production and release in large-scale melon fly SIT programs.
Biological control of tephritid fruit flies in Hawaii with special reference to the newly discovered egg-larval parasitoid, Fopius ceratitivorus (Wharton)
(Hawaiian Entomological Society, 2007-12) Bokonon-Ganta, Aimé H.; Wang, Xin-geng; Messing, Russell H.
Fopius ceratitivorus Wharton is the most recently imported parasitoid for biological control of tephritid fruit flies in Hawaii. In this paper we summarize current progress on studies of this parasitoid under quarantine conditions in Hawaii. Tests on its potential target host range reveal that F. ceratitivorus attacks and completes its development only in the Mediterranean fruit fly, Ceratitis capitata (Wiedemann). The three other extant fruit fly pests in Hawaii, Bactrocera cucurbitae (Coquillett), Bactrocera dorsalis (Hendel) and Bactrocera latifrons (Hendel) are unsuitable for F. ceratitivorus development. Competition studies with the well-established and dominant fruit fly parasitoid, Fopius arisanus (Sonan), showed that either species can win in intrinsic competition with each other, depending on which one occupies the host first. In both choice and no-choice tests, F. ceratitivorus was found to cause no parasitism nor mortality to eggs or larvae of the non-target tephritid Procecidochares alani Steyskal on infested pamakani weed, Ageratina riparia (Regel); nor the native Hawaiian tephritid Trupanea dubautia (Bryan) infesting flower heads of the endemic Asteraceae shrub, Dubautia raillardiodes Hillebrand. These findings suggest that release of this parasitoid as a biological control agent in Hawaii will pose minimal non-target risk and may contribute to overall fruit fly biological control in the islands. The delays due to the regulatory bureaucracy in removing the wasp from quarantine following host range testing are also discussed.
Current and potential impacts of mosquitoes and the pathogens they vector in the Pacific Region.
(Hawaiian Entomological Society, 2007-12) LaPointe, Dennis A.
Mosquitoes and the pathogens they transmit are ubiquitous throughout most of the temperate and tropical regions of the world. The natural and pre-European distribution and diversity of mosquitoes and mosquito-borne diseases throughout much of the Pacific region, however, depicts a depauperate and relatively benign fauna reinforcing the dream of “paradise regained”. In the central and South Pacific few mosquito species were able to colonize the remotest islands and atolls. Native mosquitoes are limited to a few far-ranging species and island endemics are typically restricted to the genera of Aedes and Culex. Only lymphatic filariasis appears to have been present as an endemic mosquito-borne disease before European contact. In nearby Australia, however, some 242 species of mosquitoes are known to occur and more than 70 arboviruses have been identified (Mackenzie 1999). In this regard Australia is more similar to the rest of the tropic and subtropical world than the smaller islands of Oceania. In our ever-shrinking world of global commerce, military activity and travel, the nature of mosquito-borne disease in the Pacific was bound to change. This paper is a brief summary of introduced mosquitoes in the Pacific and their potential impacts on human and wildlife health.
Presidents of the Hawaiian Entomological Society 1905-2005.
(Hawaiian Entomological Society, 2007-12) Easton, Emmett
Pacific Entomology Conference - Wednesday, February 16, 2005 - Centennial Meeting of the Hawaiian Entomological Society - President’s Address: The Next 100 Years of the Hawaiian Entomological Society
(Hawaiian Entomological Society, 2007-12) Hollingsworth, Robert G.
First record of the endemic Hawaiian scale Colobopyga pritchardiae (Hemiptera: Halimococcidae) on the Island of Hawaii
(Hawaiian Entomological Society, 2007-12) Neumann, Gabor; Hollingsworth, Robert G.; Follett, Peter A.
Colobopyga pritchardiae (Stickney 1934) (Hemiptera: Halimococcidae), an endemic Hawaiian scale insect associated with Pritchardia sp. was recorded for the first time on the Big Island. Notes on sites of collection, infested areas of host plants, and some behavioral aspects of the insect are provided.
Absence of the quarantine pest Elytroteinus subtruncatus in East Hawaii sweetpotato fields
(Hawaiian Entomological Society, 2007-12) Follett, Peter A.; Alontaga, Dorothy; Tom, Ron; Weinert, Eric D.; Tsuda, Dick; Kinney, Kealoha
Hawaii is unable to export its unique varieties of sweetpotatoes without quarantine treatment against four high-risk internal pests: West Indian sweetpotato weevil, Euscepes postfasciatus, sweetpotato vine borer, Omphisa anastomosalis, and ginger weevil (or Fijian ginger weevil), Elytroteinus subtruncatus are federal quarantine pests, and sweetpotato weevil, Cylas formicarius elegantulus is a quarantine pest for California and much of the southwestern U.S. In 2003, irradiation treatment at a dose of 400 Gy was approved to provide quarantine security for sweetpotatoes exported from Hawaii to the U.S. mainland (Federal Register 2003, 2004). Whereas sweetpotato is a known host for West Indian sweetpotato weevil, sweetpotato vine borer, and sweetpotato weevil, its host status for ginger weevil was uncertain. Our study suggests that commercial sweetpotato is not a pathway for E. subtruncatus and, therefore, sweetpotatoes could be irradiated at 150 Gy for control of these quarantine pests.
Exposure to ginger root oil decreases capture of male Mediterranean fruit flies (Diptera: Tephritidae) in Trimedlure-baited traps
(Hawaiian Entomological Society, 2007-12) Shelly, Todd E.; Edu, James; Pahio, Elaine
Detection programs for pestiferous tephritid fruit flies rely on traps baited with either natural or synthetic food substances, or so-called male lures. While studies on several tephritid species have demonstrated that protein feeding reduces subsequent attraction to protein food baits, comparable data for male lures are scant and largely restricted to the genus Bactrocera. Ginger root oil (GRO) is attractive to males of the Mediterranean fruit fly, Ceratitis capitata (Wiedemann), and males exposed to this oil’s scent exhibit heightened mating competitiveness. Because of this increased mating success, several sterile male release programs against C. capitata now include pre-release, GRO exposure as part of their standard operating procedures. However, the impact of such exposure on subsequent trap capture has received little study. The purpose of the present study was to measure the effect of GRO exposure on subsequent capture of sterile male medflies in trimedlure-baited traps in two fruit orchards in Hawaii. At each study site, 600 control (non-exposed) and 600 treated (GRO-exposed) males from a mass-reared, genetic sexing strain were released per replicate from a central release point, and trap captures were scored 2 d post-release for eight trimedlure- baited Jackson traps placed in a circular array around the release point. At both orchards, control males were, on average, captured in significantly greater numbers than treated males. This result did not appear to reflect differential mortality between the male types: mortality in screen cages under field conditions was similar over a 48 h period for control and treated males. Implications of these findings for sterile release programs are discussed.
A comparison of moth diversity at Kilauea (1911–1912) and Upper Waiakea Forest Reserve (1998–2000), Island of Hawaii
(Hawaiian Entomological Society, 2007-12) Giffon, Jon D.
A group of entomologists inventoried and recorded moths at Kilauea on the Island of Hawaii almost a century ago. I conducted similar surveys 86 years later in the nearby Upper Waiakea Forest Reserve (UWFR). Results of these surveys provide a rare opportunity to compare and contrast changes in Lepidoptera relative abundance and species diversity over long periods of time. The Kilauea and UWFR survey sites share a similar climatic regime, forest community, and elevation, but are 15 km apart. Ninety-three species of endemic moths were recorded at Kilauea during the 1911–1912 survey: more than 94 species were collected at UWFR from 1998–2000. I compared the number and species of moths collected at both locations, except for those in the genera Hyposmocoma and Eudonia. At least 20 Kilauea species were not found at UWFR, more than 42 UWFR species were absent from the Kilauea site. The UWFR survey also produced a number of new island records and several species new to science. Many moth species that were rare in 1911–12 were rare in 1998–2000, but most were still collected. The number of non-native moth species doubled since the 1911–1912 survey. UWFR survey results indicate that the native moth fauna on windward Mauna Loa is still relatively intact and that many new species await discovery.

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