Damage to cultivated cruciferae bynysius huttoniwhite (heteroptera : lygaeidae)

Abstract

Ten to 20 specimens of Nysius huttoni White caged on young plants of chou moellier, rape, swede, soft turnip, and hard turnip, caused serious damage. Leaf veins and petioles were sucked and became twisted, and the leaves withered. Repetitive feeding on the meristem of seedlings of rape and of soft and hard turnip resulted in abnormal, bushy growth from secondary meristems. This condition is also noted on swede plants damaged by N. huttoni in the field.Some aspects of habitat are discussed. It is considered that unsuitable habitat prevents N. huttoni becoming a pest of crucifer crops in the moister western areas of the North Island, although it should be regarded as a potential pest in drier areas on the east coast.

A review and revision of the genusRhypodesStål (Hemiptera: Lygaeidae)

“…Two new species, R. celmisiae and R. jugatus, have some sub-brachypterous specimens. Also Nysius in New Zealand contains macropterous and sub-brachypterous forms (Eyles 1960a;Eyles & Ashlock 1969). Other unusual characters like the pronotal projections are found in Rhypodes.…”

“…80,27), but sometimes long and disorganised (Fig. 116) and with characteristic flange (Ashlock 1967;Eyles & Ashlock 1969). The upper lip of the flange, although usually angled outwards, may be broad and flat at a right angle (Fig.…”

Wing polymorphism inNysius huttoniWhite (Hemiptera: Orsillidae)

“…During very dry summers, particularly in the arable cropping areas of Canterbury, New Zealand (and to some extent Central Otago), when the preferred weedy host plants dry up and die, adults of N. huttoni move onto alternative temporary hosts, and may become an economically important pest on maturing wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) crops and on seedling and establishing crucifer crops (Gurr 1957;Eyles 1965a;Swallow & Cressey 1987;Farrell & Stufkens 1993;Eyles & Malipatil 2010). In dry summers, development of more of the macropterous adult form will enable many more individuals to quickly disperse by flying to such crops, not only ensuring that greater numbers of this bug survive, but potentially enabling this species to inflict greater economic loss on any unprepared growers.…”

“…Nysius huttoni, which is widely distributed in New Zealand, is a polyphagous species (Eyles & Ashlock 1969) that feeds on over 40 host plants (Myers 1921(Myers , 1926Gurr 1952Gurr , 1957Woodward 1954;Eyles 1965aEyles , 1965bFarrell & Stufkens 1993;Wei 2001). N. huttoni is a sun-loving insect living close to the ground in areas where there are bare patches of ground between the plants allowing the sun to strike through to the ground, such as gravel car parks, roadsides, waste areas of land, weedy headlands surrounding crops and run-down lawn or pasture (Gurr 1957;Eyles 1965aEyles , 1965bFarrell & Stufkens 1993), and in its natural habitat in stony riverbeds with areas of gravel and sand between the plants (Eyles & Malipatil 2010).…”

“…N. huttoni is a sun-loving insect living close to the ground in areas where there are bare patches of ground between the plants allowing the sun to strike through to the ground, such as gravel car parks, roadsides, waste areas of land, weedy headlands surrounding crops and run-down lawn or pasture (Gurr 1957;Eyles 1965aEyles , 1965bFarrell & Stufkens 1993), and in its natural habitat in stony riverbeds with areas of gravel and sand between the plants (Eyles & Malipatil 2010).…”