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Anthonomus eugenii Cano (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) is one of the most severe pests for sweet and hot varieties of pepper (Capsicum spp.; Solanaceae). The species is distributed widely, principally in Central America, but in 2013 it was detected for the first time in the Lazio region of Italy. Modelling plays a key role in reducing chemical treatments used on Capsicum spp., but reliable predictions of pest populations require adjusted tools, as well as intense knowledge of the insect’s biology and its typical environment. The main goal of this work is to describe the life cycle of A. eugenii with a physiologically based model, which links the population dynamics with the environmental parameters. More specifically, this analysis focuses on the different response of the age-structured model in relation to the development rate function in input. Two methodologies to determine the best representative development rate function suitable for simulations are proposed; the first is “a priori analysis,” whereas the second is the “a posteriori analysis.” Simulations were compared with semi-field data, collected in a controlled experimental greenhouse where A. eugenii developed in varying temperature conditions. Results showed that the model used is adequate to describe A. eugenii population dynamics and highlighted how the a posteriori analysis can be essential to (i) analyze the simulation outputs, and (ii) determine the best representing development rate function, if the a priori analysis does not provide this information sufficiently clearly. Resumen Anthonomus eugenii Cano (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) es una de las plagas mas severas para las variedades de chile dulce y chile picante (Capsicum spp.; Solanaceae). La especie es distribuida ampliamente, principalmente en America Central, pero en el 2013 se detecto por primera vez en la region italiana de Lazio. El modelado juega un papel clave en la reduccion de los tratamientos quimicos utilizados en Capsicum spp., pero las predicciones confiables de las poblaciones de plagas requieren herramientas ajustadas, asi como un conocimiento intenso de la biologia del insecto y su ambiente tipico. El objetivo principal de este trabajo es describir el ciclo de vida de A. eugenii con un modelo basado fisiologicamente, que vincula la dinamica de la poblacion con los parametros ambientales. Mas especificamente, este analisis se enfoque sobre la respuesta diferente del modelo estructurado por edad en relacion con la funcion de tasa de desarrollo en insumo. Se proponen dos metodologias para determinar la mejor funcion de tasa de desarrollo representativa para usar en simulaciones; el primero es “analisis a priori,” mientras que el segundo es el “analisis a posteriori.” Se compararon las simulaciones con datos de semi-campo, recolectados en un invernadero experimental controlado donde A. eugenii se desarrollo en diferentes condiciones de temperatura. Los resultados mostraron que el modelo utilizado es adecuado para describir la dinamica de la poblacion de A. eugenii y resaltaron como el analisis a posteriori puede ser fundamental para (i) analizar los resultados de la simulacion y (ii) determinar la mejor funcion que representa la tasa de desarrollo, si el analisis a priori no proporciona esta informacion con suficiente claridad. Key Words: pepper weevil; Von Foerster’s equation; integrated pest management; alien species; development rate function; physiologically based models Supplementary material for this article in Florida Entomologist 103(2) (June 2020) is online at http://purl.fcla.edu/fcla/entomologist/browse View this article in BioOne

The pepper weevil, Anthonomus eugenii Cano (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) is a major pest of pepper (Capsicum spp.; Solanales: Solanaceae) in the southern United States, Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean. Feeding and oviposition cause flower and fruit abscission and internal fruit damage resulting in serious yield losses. Females lay eggs in flower buds and small fruits, shielding larvae from contact pesticides, leaving only the adult stage vulnerable. The purpose of this study was to investigate low-risk and organic products for use against the pepper weevil to provide both organic and conventional growers with more control options. A neem product (Ecozin® 1.2% ME), kaolin clay (Surround® WP), diatomaceous earth (Red Lake Earth®) and a product based on plant terpenes (Requiem®), were tested in lab and field trials for efficacy against pepper weevil. The neem product did not reduce feeding or oviposition in lab choice and no choice tests, so it was not tested in the field. Kaolin clay, diatomaceous earth and Requiem reduced feeding and oviposition in lab trials. Spring and fall field tests of these products were conducted in small plots along with a standard pesticide rotation of Actara and Vydate and an untreated control. The only treatment to increase marketable yield was the standard pesticide rotation. In the spring field trial, the standard treatment doubled yield per plant compared to the untreated controls but the yield was not different from those in the kaolin clay and surround plots. While the organic products did not increase marketable yield significantly, they did decrease overall damage, indicating possible usefulness in combination with conventional insecticides or in low population pressure by spraying early and following appropriate cultural practices such as adequate fallow periods and crop destruction. We recommend further testing of diatomaceous earth in particular in combination with conventional and organic insecticides as part of future IPM program research.

Pepper weevil, Anthonomus eugenii Cano (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), is a most serious pest of peppers in North Florida. To analyze A. eugenii infestation levels on jalapeno peppers as a reference for effectively controlling pepper weevil, we investigated infestation and population dynamics of A. eugenii, and influence of plant direction, layer, and spacing in open fields in North Florida. The results showed that adult pepper weevil infestation started in late Apr when plants started to produce buds and flowers. Three infestation peaks were recorded on 9 Jun, 24 Jul, and 11 Sep. The second peak showed the highest infestation level (14.6 ± 2.7 infested fruits per plant). The density curve of A. eugenii larvae within fruits lagged about 2 to 4 wk behind the curve of infestation level in the field. Three peaks occurred on 10 Jul, 21 Aug, and 25 Sep. Fruits on the eastern part and top third of pepper plants had the lowest infestation levels, as did plants spaced 40 cm apart. This study, focusing on the preferred locations of A. eugenii, will help improve sampling technique and pest management applications, and thus enhance the effectiveness of pesticide application, and ultimately reduce ecological damage. Resumen El picudo de chile, Anthonomus eugenii Cano (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), es la plaga mas grave de chile en el norte de la Florida. Para analizar el nivel de infestacion de A. eugenii en chiles jalapenos como referencia para controlar eficazmente el picudo del chile, investigamos la infestacion y la dinamica de la poblacion de A. eugenii, y la influencia de la direccion, la capa y el espaciamiento de las plantas en campos abiertos en el norte de la Florida. Los resultados mostraron que la infestacion de los adultos del picudo del chile comenzo a fines de abril, cuando las plantas comenzaron a producir brotes y flores. Se registraron tres picos de infestacion, el 9 de junio, el 24 de julio y el 11 de septiembre. El segundo pico mostro el nivel mas alto de infestacion (14.6 ± 2.7 frutas infestadas por planta). La curva de densidad de las larvas de A. eugenii dentro de las frutas se retraso aproximadamente 2 a 4 semanas por detras de la curva del nivel de infestacion en el campo. Tres picos ocurrieron en el 10 de julio, el 21 de agosto y el 25 de septiembre. Las frutas en la parte hacia el oriente y en el tercio parte superior de las plantas de chile tuvieron los niveles mas bajos de infestacion, al igual que las plantas separadas por 40 cm. Este estudio, que se enfoca en las ubicaciones preferidas de A. eugenii, ayudara a mejorar la tecnica de muestreo y las aplicaciones de manejo de plagas y, por lo tanto, aumentara la efectividad de la aplicacion de pesticidas y, en ultima instancia, reducira el dano ecologico. Key Words: pepper weevil; preference; pest management; population dynamics View this article in BioOne

A survey of parasitoids of the pepper weevil (Anthonomus eugenii Cano), one of the most important pests of peppers in North America, was conducted in Mexico as part of a search for biological control agents of this pest. Surveys were conducted in different years on the Pacific and Atlantic Coasts in Mexico. We recovered parasitoid species belonging to 7 genera: Triaspis eugenii Wharton & Lopez-Martinez, Urosigalphus sp., Bracon spp.; Catolaccus hunteri Crawford; Eurytoma spp.; Eupelmus sp.; and Ceratoneura sp. The latter species might be a newly recorded genus for this pest. Catolaccus hunteri, T. eugenii, and Urosigalphus sp. represented 96% of all recovered specimens. Triaspis eugenii was collected only in Nayarit, and Urosigalphus sp. predominated in Oaxaca; both locations are on the Pacific Coast. Catolaccus hunteri was present at every sample site. The biology of the braconids T. eugenii and Urosigalphus sp. would seem to make them best suited for biological control of pepper weevil due to t...

The pepper weevil, Anthonomus eugenii Cano, is a serious economic pest of cultivated Capsicum spp. peppers and is widely distrib uted throughout the southern United States (Elmore et al. 1934; Goff & Wilson 1937; Riley & King 1994), Mexico (Laborde & Pozo 1984), Central America (Andrews et al. 1986), and the Caribbean (Abreu & Cruz 1985). Eggs are de posited in flower buds and fruit, where larvae and pupae complete their development. In fested buds and fruit often abscise, but larvae and pupae can complete development if fallen buds and fruit do not desiccate. Yield losses can

Catolaccus hunteri Crawford (Hymenoptera: Pteromalidae) is the most abundant parasitoid attacking the pepper weevil, Anthonomus eugenii Cano, in Florida (Riley & Schuster 1992). The parasitioid was also recovered from weevil infested fruit collected in several states in Mexico and other countries in Mesoamerica (Aguilar & Servin 2000; Mariscal et al. 1998). While natural enemies generally are regarded as contributing little for the control of the pepper weevil (Elmore & Campbell 1954), augmentative releases of C. hunteri on the alternative host plant American black nightshade during the off-season and on pepper at the initiation of flowering have resulted in reduced or delayed damage by weevil larvae (Schuster 2007). The pepper weevil is a serious economic pest of cultivated Capsicum spp. peppers in the southern United States (Elmore et al. 1934; Goff and Wilson 1937; Riley & King 1994), Mexico (Laborde & Pozo 1984), Central America (Andrews et al. 1986), and the Caribbean (Abreu & Cruz 1985). The pest was found in field trials to respond to yellow sticky traps (Riley & Schuster 1994). Pheromone baited, yellow sticky traps (Trece Inc. Adair, Oklahoma) are used to monitor migration of pepper weevil adults into pepper fields and to time the applications of insecticides targeting weevil adults (Natwick & Trumble 2007). It is not known whether C. hunteri also responds to yellow sticky traps and whether the traps might be useful for monitoring the activity of the parasitoid. The purpose of the present investigation was to evaluate the response of C. hunteri in the laboratory to sticky traps of selected colors. The C. hunteri adults used in the experiment were obtained from a laboratory colony maintained on a factitious host, Callosobruchus maculatus Fabricius (Coleoptera: Bruchidae), on garbanzo beans (Cicer arietinum L.) (Vasquez et al. 2005). Experiments were conducted in a room maintained about 27 °C, about 60% RH and 14:10 h L:D. Yellow, white, red, blue, gray and green plastic sheets were cut into 10.2 cm squares that were coated on one side with Tanglefoot® Tangle-TrapTM Insect Trap Coating Brushable (The Tanglefoot Co., Grand Rapids, Michigan). The Tangle-Trap was heated to 87 °C and, when it turned from translucent to clear, was spread into a thin layer on each square with a 1.3 cm paint brush. Single squares of each color were randomly placed horizontally in a circular pattern on the bottoms of 12, 70 cm × 70 cm × 70 cm screen cages. About 200 female C. hunteri adults of unknown age were released in the middle of the ring of plastic squares in each cage and the numbers trapped were determined 24 h later. Data were subjected to analysis of variance and, when an F value was significant at P < 0.05, means were compared using the Least Significant Difference (SAS Institute 2008). On average, only about 25% of the C. hunteri adults released into the cages were trapped on the colored, plastic squares coated with adhesive (Table 1). Of those captured, about 3 times more were trapped on yellow, red or white squares than were trapped on green, blue or gray squares. The yellow sticky traps used for monitoring the presence/abundance of pepper weevil adults in the field may also be useful in detecting the presence of adult C. hunteri females.