Environmental Entomology (2009) 38, 1168-1173

Peter A. Follett, Mark G. Wright and Mary Golden (2009)
Nezara viridula (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) feeding patterns in macadamia nut in Hawaii: Nut maturity and cultivar effects
Environmental Entomology 38 (4), 1168-1173
Abstract: Nezara viridula L. (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) is a serious pest of macadamia nuts, Macadamia integrifolia, in Hawaii. Using ruthenium red dye to stain stink bug feeding probes, feeding activity was determined for nuts of various maturity levels harvested from the tree and off the ground throughout the growing season in five commercial cultivars. Damage occurred in the tree and on the ground during all nut growth stages. Damage on the ground was often higher than in the tree. Cultivar 246 was more susceptible to attack than cultivars 333 and 800. It was previously thought that cultivar susceptibility was related to husk and shell thickness, but cultivar 246 showed higher damage than other cultivars even during early nut development when the nuts are small and before the shell has formed. This suggests that shell and husk thickness may play a secondary role in susceptibility to feeding by N. viridula. Monitoring N. viridula feeding activity during early nut development may help alert growers to potential problems later in the season, but early-season probing activity in immature nuts was not a good predictor of damage levels in mature nuts later in the season in our study.
(The abstract is excluded from the Creative Commons licence and has been copied with permission by the publisher.)
Link to article at publishers website
Database assignments for author(s): Peter A. Follett, Mark G. Wright

Research topic(s) for pests/diseases/weeds:
damage/losses/economics
resistance/tolerance/defence of host

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Pest and/or beneficial records:

Beneficial	Pest/Disease/Weed	Crop/Product	Country	Quarant.
	Nezara viridula	Macadamia (Macadamia integrifolia)	U.S.A. (Hawaii)