Predation by Podisus maculiventris (Say) (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) on viburnum leaf beetle, Pyrrhalta viburni (Paykull) (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae), under laboratory and field conditions

To evaluate the potential of Podisus maculiventris (Say) (Heteroptera: Pentatomidae) as a biological control agent against viburnum leaf beetle, Pyrrhalta viburni (Paykull) (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae), laboratory trials were conducted to measure prey consumption of P. maculiventris over nymphal development. Field trials tested the impact of augmentative releases of P. maculiventris nymphs on populations of P. viburni, using both open shrubs and caged branches of Viburnum trilobum. In the laboratory, P. maculiventris nymphs successfully developed while preying on P. viburni larvae and adults. Each nymph consumed an average of 100.6 larvae or 16.9 adults. Immature development duration was comparable between nymphs feeding on P. viburni adults and those given Galleria mellonella (L.) (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) larvae as prey. In field trials, inundative releases of 30 P. maculiventris nymphs on naturally infested V. trilobum shrubs significantly reduced pest defoliation on shrubs infested with <3,000 larvae but had no effect on shrubs with heavier infestations. On caged branches, individual nymphs successfully developed when feeding only on P. viburni larvae. These results show that P. viburni larvae and adults are suitable prey for P. maculiventris and this predator could potentially be developed as a biological control agent against P. viburni.