The Geographic Origin of an Intercepted Biosecurity Pest Beetle Assigned Using Hydrogen Stable Isotopes

Abstract

Arhopalus ferus (Mulsant) (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) is a forest pest that does not occur in Australia. In February 2010, the container ship Tatiana Schulte, en route from New Zealand, was refused permission to enter Australia following the discovery of numerous A. ferus aboard. The place where the infestation occurred was unknown, representing an uncontrolled biosecurity-risk pathway. Hydrogen isotope analysis of the beetles' wings showed that the infestation most likely originated from Auckland, New Zealand.

Determining the geographical origin of Asian longhorn beetle (Anoplophora glabripennis) specimens using stable isotope and trace element analyses

“…This finding was beneficial for obtaining more samples for testing, as whole beetles did not need to be destroyed for analyses, as is required for TE analyses. If further/larger populations of A. glabripennis become available in the near future, the analyses of wings (smaller sample size compared with legs, 1:2 weight ratio) might also be considered for additional data, as promoted by other research groups …”

Re‐evaluation of the hydrogen stable isotopic composition of keratin calibration standards for wildlife and forensic science applications

“…The stable isotopic composition of hydrogen ( δ 2 H value) in complex natural organic materials has been widely used to quantify geographical provenance for increasingly diverse ecological, environmental, biosecurity, food authenticity, and forensics applications . This is because the hydrogen isotopic composition of water varies predictably across continents and among terrestrial biomes and animals and plants incorporate the H isotope composition of precipitation during growth (flora) and from dietary food and drinking water (fauna).…”

Natal origin of the invasive biosecurity pest, brown marmorated stink bug (Halyomorpha halys: Penatomidae), determined by dual‐element stable isotope‐ratio mass spectrometry

“…) and none on the family Pentatomidae. Of note is that the intra‐population δ 2 H variation was less than observed for other entomological isotope studies and the intra‐country variation was generally consistent across the reference data‐set. Consequently, the BMSB from the different countries cluster relatively closely, including those samples intercepted on separate, unrelated shipments (i.e.…”

“…The value of this relationship to indicate insect natal origins has been demonstrated in an ecological context for many years (e.g. ), but the potential for biosecurity has only recently been recognized …”

“…), [15][16][17][18] but the potential for biosecurity has only recently been recognized. [19][20][21][22] Hydrogen and oxygen stable isotope markers were considered here. These are composed of the isotope ratios within each element and are expressed as 2 H and 18 O, where delta ( ) is the isotopic composition of the sample relative to the calibration standard, Vienna Standard Mean Ocean Water (VSMOW) (see).…”