Density and Egg Parasitism of Stink Bugs (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) in Elderberry and Dispersal Into Crops

Chinavia hilaris (Say), Euschistus servus (Say), Euschistus tristigmus (Say), and Thyanta custator custator (F.) (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) are serious pests of crops in the southeastern United States but little is known concerning their dispersal from noncrop hosts in woodlands into crops. This 2-yr study was conducted to investigate whether elderberry [Sambucus nigra subsp. canadensis (L.) R. Bolli] in woodlands serves as a source of stink bugs dispersing into adjacent crops and to examine parasitism of C. hilaris and E. servus eggs on this plant. Elderberry was a reproductive host for each of the four stink bug species; females oviposited on plants with subsequent nymphs feeding on elderberry and developing into adults. Anastatus mirabilis (Walsh & Riley) (Hymenoptera: Eupelmidae), Anastatus reduvii (Howard), and Trissolcus edessae Fouts (Hymenoptera: Scelionidae) were prevalent egg parasitoids of C. hilaris but A. reduvii was the prevalent parasitoid of E. servus Newly developed stink bug adults were first detected on elderberry around mid-July. Then in late July and early August, as elderberry fruit senesced and cotton bolls became available, stink bugs began dispersing from elderberry into cotton based on recapture of stink bugs on cotton that had previously been marked on elderberry. In addition, in 2015, density of C. hilaris, E. servus, and E. tristigmus was higher in cotton with elderberry than in cotton without it. Over the study, economic threshold was reached for four of seven cotton fields. Elimination of elderberry in woodlands adjacent to cotton may be a viable management tactic for control of stink bugs in cotton.