Portal de Periódicos da CAPES

Laboratory host range testing of Lilioceris sp. near impressa (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) – a potential biological control agent of air potato, Dioscorea bulbifera (Dioscoreaceae)

2010; Taylor & Francis; Volume: 20; Issue: 6 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1080/09583150903531332

1360-0478

Robert W. Pemberton, Gloria L. Witkus,

Cassava research and cyanide

Abstract Air potato, Dioscorea bulbifera, is an invasive, herbaceous, climbing vine, which dominates invaded native vegetation in Florida. The fortuitous discovery of Lilioceris sp. near impressa defoliating D. bulbifera vines and feeding on the bulbils (aerial tubers) in the Katmandu Valley of Nepal initiated a project to assess the potential of this leaf beetle for biological control of air potato in Florida. Quarantine host specificity tests were conducted on 41 plant species in 24 families and 13 orders, with 26 species outside of the Dioscoreaceae and 15 species within the Dioscoreaceae. Adults test fed (nibbled) on 4/12 of tested Dioscorea species, but no larval feeding or development occurred on any plant other than the target, D. bulbifera. The larvae feed gregariously and quickly skeletonize offered leaves of air potato. Air potato bulbils that received any feeding damage to the primary meristematic region did not sprout. The ability of the beetle larvae and adults to feed on the bulbils is important because in Florida, the plant rarely flowers or produces fruit, so these aerial tubers are the primary means of persistence and spread. The adults can live for several months without food. This extremely specialized herbivore from part of the weed's native range appears to have great promise as a biological control of air potato. Keywords: air potatoChrysomelidaeDioscoreaceaehost-specificity testsweed biological control Acknowledgements The Division of Entomology of the Nepalese Agricultural Research Council reared and supplied the beetles used during the tests. Sanjay Bista, Salmudra Joshi and Pradhan Shree Baba are especially thanked for this fine cooperative effort. Lauren Raz, formerly of Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, and Joanne Pemberton helped locate and collect test plants in Puerto Rico. Fairchild Garden kindly grew the collected Puerto Rican plants. Luke Kasarjian acquired additional test plants and grew them with assistance from Gloria Witkus. Gloria Witkus, Hong Liu and Rachel Taylor assisted with the testing. Hong Liu provided the statistical test and box plot. Robert Kula, research entomologist with the USDA Systematic Entomology Laboratory identified the ichneumonid pupal parasitoid, Callidora sp. Funding for the research was provided by the Bureau of Invasive Plant Management, formerly of the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, and currently of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission; and the Southwest Florida Water Management District.