An invasive type of stink bug has
hitchhiked its way into Connecticut and is threatening fruits, vegetables and
flowers.
Called the brown marmorated stink
bug, the spotted insect came to the United States from Asia as a stowaway on
cargo containers. Entomologists believe they arrived in Allentown, Pa., in 1996
and spread to New Jersey in 1998. Since then, the insect has spread to 33
states and the District of Columbia.
But the brown marmorated stink bug
feeds on more than 70 plants and has no known biological enemy, said Chris T.
Maier, entomologist with the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station in New
Haven.
When this pest eats plants and
flowers, it leaves brown spots behind, and with the nymphs and adults eating
the same plant, they can cause significant damage. This stink bug is known to
eat apples, peaches, nectarines, pears, cherries, apricots, figs, raspberries,
blackberries, grapes, sweet corn and field corn, soybeans, lima beans,
tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, roses, honeysuckle, lilacs, maples and dogwoods.
These pests also feed on perennials, sunflowers, hazelnuts and pecans.
There are no insecticides known to
effectively kill this nuisance, although scientists are working on it.
With nothing to stop the brown
marmorated stink bugs from spreading, populations can reach levels high enough
to cause serious damage to crops within a few years after arriving in an area,
Maier said.
In the mid-Atlantic states such as
Maryland, New Jersey and Pennsylvania, the stink bug populations soared last
year, damaging so many crops that they hurt apple and peach growers
financially.
But if you spot a brown marmorated
stink bug, she said, immediately contact the experiment station (see
instructions below.) The brown marmorated stink bug is
the only brownish stink bug, over one-half-inch long, with distinctive white
bands on each antenna, Maier said.
Both the adults and nymphs can be
found on the underside of leaves from June to August, said Joan Allen,
assistant cooperative extension educator in residence at the University of
Connecticut.
To kill any such bugs found outside,
shake them into a bucket of soapy water or into a plastic zippered bag, and put
it in the freezer. Like all stink bugs, they emit a pungent odor when
threatened, so try to avoid direct contact.
>>If you see an adult bug,
collect a specimen, note the date and contact Chris Maier at Chris.Maier@ct.gov/.
Please mark the town where it was found, and send it to Maier at the
Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, P.O. Box 1106, New Haven, CT
06504.
