Environmental risk assessment of the egg parasitoid Anaphes inexpectatus for classical biological control of the Eucalyptus snout beetle, Gonipterus platensis

Classical biological control is a valuable tool against invasive pests, but concerns about non-target effects requires risk assessment studies. Potential non-target effects of Anaphes inexpectatus Huber and Prinsloo (Hymenoptera: Mymaridae) were assessed for a classical biological control programme...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:BioControl (Dordrecht, Netherlands) Netherlands), 2017-08, Vol.62 (4), p.457-468
Main Authors: Valente, Carlos, Afonso, Catarina, Gonçalves, Catarina I., Alonso-Zarazaga, Miguel A., Reis, Ana, Branco, Manuela
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Agriculture
Animal Biochemistry
Animal Ecology
Behavioral Sciences
Biological control
Biomedical and Life Sciences
Coleoptera
Ecological risk assessment
Eggs
Entomology
Environmental assessment
Environmental risk
Eucalyptus
Host specificity
Life Sciences
Parasitoids
Pests
Plant Pathology
Risk assessment
Species
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Summary:Classical biological control is a valuable tool against invasive pests, but concerns about non-target effects requires risk assessment studies. Potential non-target effects of Anaphes inexpectatus Huber and Prinsloo (Hymenoptera: Mymaridae) were assessed for a classical biological control programme against the Eucalyptus snout beetle, Gonipterus platensis (Marelli) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae). No-choice tests were conducted with 17 non-target species to assess host specificity, including 11 curculionids. In behavioural observations, A.   inexpectatus showed no interest in any of the non-target species, but two weevil species were parasitised within five days of exposure, although at significantly lower rates than G. platensis . In choice tests, only one non-target, Hypera postica (Gyllenhal) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), was parasitised, at a rate of 0.6%, while 50.0% of G. platensis eggs were parasitised. Based on the host specificity test results and the potential host fauna found in the target area, the likelihood of non-target effects resulting from the release of A. inexpectatus is considered to be negligible.
ISSN:1386-6141
1573-8248
DOI:10.1007/s10526-017-9809-9