The invasive brown marmorated stink bug, Halyomorpha halys (Stå l) (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae), is an important pest of soybean (Glycine max L. Merr.) in the Mid-Atlantic United States. In order to assess the influence of nonmanaged wooded borders on H. halys infestation patterns in soybean, 12 soybean fields in Orange and Madison Counties, VA, were sampled each week from July to October in 2013 or 2014 for H. halys. At each location, five 2-min visual counts of H. halys life stages were made on tree of heaven (Ailanthus altissima Mill.) and other favorable host trees along a wooded border, on the adjacent soybean edge, 15 m into the soybean field, and 30 m into the field. Seasonal data showed a clear trend at all locations of H. halys densities building up on A. altissima-dominated wooded borders in July, then, gradually moving into adjacent soybean field edges later in the summer. Halyomorpha halys did not move far from the invading field edge, with approximately half as many bugs being present at 15 m into the field and very few being detected 30 m into the field. These results have implications for continued monitoring and management using field border sprays, particularly on edges adjacent to woods.

Peanut burrower bug, Pangaeus bilineatus (Say), is a piercing-sucking pest of peanut, Arachis hypogaea (L.), that is native to Central and North America. The insect spends most of its life below the soil surface and is not easily detected in the field. Although injury to peanut is sporadic in the Southern USA, the bug has become a serious economic pest for farmers in the region in recent years. During and after peanut seed formation, adult and immature bugs feed directly on seeds through the hull, reducing the quality and value of the crop. The value of peanut is reduced by approximately $209/MT when feeding injury is present on ≥3.5% of kernels by weight. Deep tillage prior to planting and application of granular chlorpyrifos during the growing season are the only tactics currently available for managing P. bilineatus in peanut in the United States. Relatively little research attention has been focused on P. bilineatus, and improved knowledge of the insect’s biology and ecology is needed to develop an integrated pest management (IPM) strategy that significantly reduces financial losses caused by this insect. The purpose of this article is to provide a review of the taxonomic history, biology, pest status, and management of P. bilineatus primarily as it relates to peanut production systems in the Southeast USA.

Sampling soybean fields for the brown marmorated stink bug, Halyomorpha halys Stål (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae), can be challenging. Both adults and nymphs have a "startle response" and drop to the ground with even the slightest disturbance. This behavior could reduce the effectiveness of the traditional sweep net and ground cloth sampling methods. In 2013 and 2014, in Virginia, Delaware, and Maryland, we evaluated a visual plant inspection method that consisted of counting the number of brown marmorated stink bug nymphs and adults seen on soybean plants in a 2-min inspection period while walking carefully between two rows. After a 30-min interval, which allowed the stink bugs to reposition in the canopy, the area was resampled using 15 sweeps with a 38-cm-diameter sweep net. In total, 76 soybean fields and 2,042 paired comparisons were used to determine a strong linear relationship between sampling methods (y  =  0.984x  +  0.4359, R2  =  0.6934, where y  =  brown marmorated stink bugs/2-min visual count and x  =  brown marmorated stink bugs/15 sweeps). An average visual count of 5.4 brown marmorated stink bugs in 2 min was estimated as being equivalent to the current economic threshold of 5 stink bugs per 15 sweeps. Visual inspection appears to be an effective method for assessing brown marmorated stink bug populations in soybeans.