Irradiation as a Quarantine Treatment for Mango Seed Weevil

The mango seed weevil, Cryptorhynchus mangiferae (F.), has prevented the export of mangoes from Hawaii to the U.S. mainland for over 50 years because there were no approved quarantine treatments to control this pest. Irradiation was explored as a method to prevent adult emergence in, or to sterilize, mango seed weevil. Mixed-age mango seed weevils in mangoes were irradiated with target doses of 50, 100, or 300 Gy and held for adult emergence. The 300 Gy treatment (dose range 180–310 Gy) did not prevent adult emergence. Emerging adults from the 100 and 300 Gy treatments were lethargic and short-lived, and laid no eggs indicating sterility. An irradiation quarantine treatment (100 Gy) to sterilize mango seed weevil in mangoes has been proposed. Approval of this treatment will open U.S. mainland markets to mango exports from Hawaii

Release and Establishment of Encarsia diaspidicola (Hymenoptera: Aphelididae) Against White Peach Scale (Hemiptera: Diaspididae) in Papaya

White peach scale, Pseudaulacaspis pentagona (Targioni-Tozetti) (He- miptera: Diaspididae) is a serious economic and quarantine pest of papaya, Carica papaya L. The parasitic wasp Encarsia diaspidicola (Silvestri) (Hymenoptera: Aphelinidae) was brought from Western Samoa into a quarantine containment facility in Hawaii for evaluation and potential release against white peach scale. E. diaspidicola was considered an ideal biological control candidate for release in Hawaii because it is reportedly highly host specific. Host range testing in quarantine with several exotic diaspidids and related taxa, including a native palm scale, indicated that E. dispidicola is unlikely to attack non-target species or cause harm to the environment if released for control of white peach scale in Hawaii. The Hawaii Department of Agriculture and USDA APHIS issued permits for its release. Releases of E. diaspidicola were made beginning in February 2013 in a papaya field in Kapoho on the Big Island. Yellow sticky trap monitoring suggests that the wasp has established in the area of release. Infested papaya logs are being used to spread the wasp to new areas

Sensitivity of the Quarantine Pest Rough Sweetpotato Weevil, Blosyrus asellus to Postharvest Irradiation Treatment

Rough sweetpotato weevil, Blosyrus asellus (Olivier), is a new quar- antine pest of Hawaii sweetpotatoes. Currently, sweetpotatoes can be exported from Hawaii to the U.S. mainland using a postharvest irradiation treatment of 150 Gy to control three other regulated insect pests. Studies were conducted to deter- mine whether this current radiation dose will also control any rough sweetpotato weevils in export shipments. Adult weevils were treated at various levels between 25 to 125 Gy and egg laying and egg hatch were measured. Rough sweetpotato weevil was found to be highly susceptible to irradiation, with no egg hatch at any radiation dose, even 25 Gy, the lowest dose tested. Results suggest that the 150 Gy irradiation treatment should be sufficient for control of rough sweetpotato weevil in Hawaii sweetpotatoes

Export of Commercial Hass Avocados From Argentina Poses Negligible Risk of Ceratitis capitata (Diptera: Tephritidae) Infestation

Argentina has to meet quarantine restrictions because of the Mediterranean fruit fly, Ceratitis capitata (Wiedemann) (Diptera: Tephritidae), to export 'Hass' avocados, Persea americana Miller, to certain countries. Hass avocado at the hard, mature green stage is potentially a conditional nonhost for C. capitata and could open export markets without the need for a quarantine treatment. Trapping data from 1998 to 2006 showed that C. capitata was present in avocado orchards, particularly early in the harvest season. The host status of hard, mature green Hass avocado to C. capitata was evaluated using laboratory and field cage tests under no-choice conditions and by assessing natural levels of infestation in commercially harvested fruit from the main avocado production area. In total, 2,250 hard, mature green avocado fruit were exposed to 11,250 gravid females for 24 or 48 h after harvest in laboratory or field cages, and no infestations were found. During 11 seasons, 5,949 fruit in total were sampled from the trees and 992 fruit were collected from the ground, and in none of them were any live or dead fruit fly larvae found. Inspection of >198,000 commercial fruit at the packinghouse from 1998 to 2011 showed no symptoms of fruit fly infestation. These data exceed the published standards for determination of nonhost status, as well as the Probit 9 standard for development of quarantine treatments. Hass avocado harvested at the hard, mature green stage was not infested by C. capitata and seems to pose a negligible quarantine risk. As a consequence, no postharvest treatment or other quarantine actions should be required by importing countries.Fil: Elvira Villagrán, M.. Gobierno de Tucumán. Ministerio de Desarrollo Productivo. Estación Experimental Agroindustrial Obispo Colombres; ArgentinaFil: Willink, Eduardo. Gobierno de Tucumán. Ministerio de Desarrollo Productivo. Estación Experimental Agroindustrial Obispo Colombres; ArgentinaFil: Vera, María Teresa. Gobierno de Tucumán. Ministerio de Desarrollo Productivo. Estación Experimental Agroindustrial Obispo Colombres; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Follett, Peter. United States Department Of Agriculture; Estados Unido

Post-harvest entomology research in the United States Department of Agriculture–Agricultural Research Service

This is a review of current post-harvest entomology research conducted by the Agricultural Research Service, the research branch of the US Department of Agriculture. The review covers both durable and perishable commodities. Research on biochemistry, genetics, physiology, monitoring and control of insects infesting stored grain, dried fruits and nuts, and processed commodities is reviewed. Research on development of quarantine treatments, particularly for fruit flies, is also reviewed, including research on thermal and irradiation treatments and a discussion of risk management for quarantine pests. Two areas of research are covered more extensively: a project to map the genome of the red flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum, and the use of near-infrared spectroscopy for detection of hidden infestations in grain, quantification of insect fragments in food, determination of quality in dried fruits, identification of insect species and age-grading insects. Future research directions are identified

Post-harvest entomology research in the United States Department of Agriculture–Agricultural Research Service

This is a review of current post-harvest entomology research conducted by the Agricultural Research Service, the research branch of the US Department of Agriculture. The review covers both durable and perishable commodities. Research on biochemistry, genetics, physiology, monitoring and control of insects infesting stored grain, dried fruits and nuts, and processed commodities is reviewed. Research on development of quarantine treatments, particularly for fruit flies, is also reviewed, including research on thermal and irradiation treatments and a discussion of risk management for quarantine pests. Two areas of research are covered more extensively: a project to map the genome of the red flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum, and the use of near-infrared spectroscopy for detection of hidden infestations in grain, quantification of insect fragments in food, determination of quality in dried fruits, identification of insect species and age-grading insects. Future research directions are identified

A Low-Cost Trap to Monitor Parasitism of Macadamia Felted Coccid (Hemiptera: Eriococcidae) and Other Scale Insects

We designed and tested a custom-made parasitoid emergence trap that can be installed on macadamia trees in the field to study parasitism of macadamia felted coccid, Acanthococcus ironsidei (Williams) (Hemiptera: Eriococcidae). The cost of materials for the trap is approximately $3.00 each, and a trap can be constructed in ~15 min. Optimal methods for determining percent parasitism using these traps are still under development, but two proposed methods gave estimates of 0.24 and 4.85% for mortality due to parasitism by Encarsia lounsburyi (Hymenoptera: Aphelinidae). The trap could be an effective and low-cost tool for future parasitism studies or in determining population structure of macadamia felted coccid as it captures parasitoids and other mobile, positively phototactic insects that are present under the covered area of the trap

Postharvest Quality of Kiwifruit (Actinidia chinensis) after X-ray Irradiation Quarantine Treatment

The quality of two kiwifruit varieties [Actinidia chinensis var. deliciosa, ‘Hayward’ (green-fleshed), and Actinidia chinensis var. chinensis, ‘Zesy002’ (gold-fleshed)] was determined after X-ray irradiation at doses suitable for disinfestation of quarantine pests. Fruit were treated with irradiation doses of 0, 200, 400, 600, or 800 Gy and stored for 14 days at 2 °C. Irradiation did not affect soluble solids content, respiration rate, or taste. Minimal softening occurred to ‘Zesy002’ treated with irradiation doses of 400 or 800 Gy. No visible radiation injury, scald, or discoloration was observed. Irradiation treatment of kiwifruit at doses ≤800 Gy would ensure visual, compositional, and sensory quality while providing quarantine security