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ARS Home » Northeast Area » Newark, Delaware » Beneficial Insects Introduction Research Unit » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #320159
Research Project: Biological Control of Invasive Wood-Boring Insect Pests such as Emerald Ash Borer and Asian Longhorned Beetle

Location: Beneficial Insects Introduction Research Unit

Title: A new species of oobius trjapitzin (hymenoptera:encyrtidae) from the russian far east that parasitizes eggs of emerald ash borer (coleoptera:buprestidae)

Author
item YAO, YANXIA - Chinese Academy Of Forestry
item Duan, Jian
item Hopper, Keith
item MOLTERN, JASON - US Department Of Agriculture (USDA)
item Gates, Michael

Submitted to: Annals of the Entomological Society of America
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 2/25/2016
Publication Date: 5/3/2016
Citation: Yao, Y., Duan, J.J., Hopper, K.R., Moltern, J.L., Gates, M.W. 2016. A new species of oobius trjapitzin (hymenoptera:encyrtidae) from the russian far east that parasitizes eggs of emerald ash borer (coleoptera:buprestidae). Annals of the Entomological Society of America. 109(4):629-638. doi: 10.1093/aesa/saw022.

Interpretive Summary: The Emerald Ash borer (EAB) is a serious invasive forest pest in the United States, that has killed millions of North American ash trees and spread to 25 States since it was first detected in 2002 in South Michigan. Discovery of new natural enemies from EAB’s native range in Northeast Asia can greatly enhance the potential for biological control introduction against EAB in the U.S. Using DNA sequence data and morphological characteristics, scientists from the USDA ARS Beneficial Insects Introduction Research Unit and the Chinese Academy of Forestry described a new species of EAB egg parasitoid collected from the Russian Far East. This new species (Oobius promorskyoensis) may potentially be introduced to the U.S. for biological control of EAB, providing a valuable management tool for this invasive forest pest.

Technical Abstract: A new egg parasitoid of the emerald ash borer Agrilus planipennis Fairmaire (Coleoptera: Buprestidae) from the Russian Far East, Oobius primorskyensis Yao et Duan is described. Both morphological characters and analysis of DNA sequence divergence suggest that this species is different from the previously described emerald ash borer egg parasitoid O. agrili Zhang et Huang from China. Diagnosis of the new species with comparisons to related Palearctic species, particularly O.agrili, is provided. The new species is another major natural enemy of A. planipennis in its native range and may be considered for biological control introduction against A. planipennis in North America. Type specimens are deposited in Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History.