Parasitism of the Wheat Stinkbug, Aelia rostrata Boh. (Heteroptera: Pentatomidae) with the Entomopathogenic Nematode, Hexamermis sp (Nematoda: Mermithidae)

WOS: 000314559600008The aim of this study was to determine the rate of parasitism of wheat stinkbug (WSB), Aelia rostrata Boh. (Heteroptera: Pentatomidae) with Hexamermis sp. (Nematoda: Mermithidae) in 2010 and 2011. For this purpose, the adults of A rostrata were collected from overwintering areas in Ankara, Turkey. The samples were brought to laboratory and sexed. They were dissected to check for the presence or absence of mermithids. Thus, the rates of parasitism were calculated for females and males of A rostrata. Parasitism rates were 24.7 and 21.4% for females and 33.6 and 36.1% for males in 2010 and 2011, respectively. Parasitized A. rostrata contained an average of 2.6 +/- 0.72 nematode individuals. In a sample of 30 parasitized A. rostrata, 63.3% contained a single juvenile worm, 16.7% contained 2 and 20.0% contained 3 or more individuals. The mean body length of juvenile measured 7.6 +/- 0.24 cm for females and 3.0 +/- 0.15 cm for males. The results suggest that Hexamermis sp. is an important natural enemy of A rostrata in overwintering areas and could be potential a biological control agent for the pest management in the future