Fungi associated with a natural epizootic in Fiorinia externa Ferris (Hemiptera: Diaspididae) populations

Abstract

Stands of eastern hemlock [(Tsuga canadensis (L.) Carrière] in the northeastern United States are in decline, in part from the attack of elongate hemlock scale, Fiorinia externa Ferris (Hemiptera: Diaspididae). From 2001 to the present, a natural epizootic has been observed in populations of F. externa. Initially discovered at the Mianus River Gorge Preserve in Bedford, New York, the epizootic has also been detected in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Connecticut. Understanding and assessing the identity of the pathogenic micro‐organisms responsible for this natural mortality is crucial for developing biological controls for this pest. We have isolated and taxonomically and genetically identified entomopathogens, phytopathogens and endophytic fungi associated with F. externa. Isolates of the following were obtained: Colletotrichum sp., Lecanicillium lecanii, Beauveria bassiana, Metarhiziopsis microspora, Myriangium sp., Mycosphaerella sp. anamorph, Nectria sp., Botrytis sp., Phialophora sp. and Fusarium sp.

Entomopathogenic Fungi Associated with Exotic Invasive Insect Pests in Northeastern Forests of the USA

“…and others have been recovered from infected pear thrips [ 9 , 10 ]. Other fungal isolates have been found to be associated with elongate hemlock scale and lecanium scale [ 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 ]. These entomopathogenic agents offer an opportunity for biological regulation of exotic invasive species, especially when the fungal pathogens are found associated with epizootic processes, where a rapid decline of the pest population is occurring [ 15 ].…”

Seasonal prevalence of the insect pathogenic fungus Colletotrichum nymphaeae in Brazilian citrus groves under different chemical pesticide regimes

“…There is limited published information about Colletotrichum species infecting insects (Marcelino et al, 2008(Marcelino et al, , 2009a(Marcelino et al, , 2009b and scarce knowledge concerning the temporal dynamics of citrus orthezia/Colletotrichum pathogen populations. In this study, we confirmed the identity of an endemic insect pathogen (identified here as C. nymphaeae) infecting the scale P. praelonga in citrus groves under different regimes of chemical pesticide use.…”

“…More recently, Colletotrichum acutatum var. fioriniae was noted to cause epizootics on the elongate hemlock scale, Fiorinia externa (Hemiptera: Diaspididae), in the United States (Marcelino et al, 2008(Marcelino et al, , 2009a(Marcelino et al, , 2009b. To date, it appears that these are the two exceptional cases in which Colletotrichum was found associated with insects.…”

“…There is little published information about Colletotrichum species infecting insects (Cesnik and Ferraz, 2000;Marcelino et al, 2008Marcelino et al, , 2009aMarcelino et al, , 2009bDamm et al, 2012) nor epizootiology of the citrus orthezia/Colletotrichum association. Here we investigated the temporal dynamics of the 'salmão' (salmon) fungus, so called because of the orange-pink (salmon) color of its conidia on affected hosts, with the citrus orthezia population under field conditions and correlated with citrus groves under different pesticidal use practices in a commercial citrus farm in Matão, SP, Brazil, over 18 months between 2004 and2006.…”

Entomopathogenic fungi associated with certain scale insects (Hemiptera: Coccoidea) in Egypt

“…and Unaspis citri (Comstock). On the other hand, Marcelino et al, (2009) observed a natural epizootic in populations of diaspidid Fiorinia externa. A total of 121 fungal isolates of the entomopathogenic species: Colletotrichum sp., L. muscarium, Beauveria bassiana, Metarhizium microspora, and Myriangium sp.…”