A Caribbean species of Mecidea Dallas, M. longula Stål, apparently established in south Florida, is reported from the United States for the first time. Specimens were first collected in February 2008 in a light trap operated in Miami-Dade County, Florida. Collections in that trap have continued through the present. Searches near the trap location resulted in several specimens being taken from smutgrass, Sporobolus indicus (L.), an exotic grass now established throughout much of the southeastern United States. The three North American species of Mecidea are keyed and illustrated. In addition to the Florida locality, M. longula is reported for the first time from the British Virgin Islands, St. Kitts, St. Martin, and the Turks and Caicos Islands

Dobbs, Thomas T.

Eger, Joseph E., Jr.

English

Hochschulschriftenserver - Universität Frankfurt am Main

CENTER FOR SYSTEMATIC ENTOMOLOGY, INC., Gainesville, FLMecidea longula Stål (Heteroptera: Pentatomidae: Pentatominae:Mecideini) is established in south FloridaJoseph E. Eger, Jr.Dow AgroSciences, LLC2606 S. Dundee St.Tampa, FL 33629jeeger@dow.comThomas T. DobbsUnited States Department of AgricultureAnimal and Plant Health Inspection ServicePlant Protection and QuarantineMiami Inspection StationP.O. Box 66-0520Miami, FL 33266Date of Issue: January 22, 2010INSECTAMUNDI A Journal of World Insect Systematics0109Joseph E. Eger, Jr. and Thomas T. DobbsMecidea longula Stål (Heteroptera: Pentatomidae: Pentatominae: Mecideini) isestablished in south FloridaInsecta Mundi 0109: 1-5Published in 2010 byCenter for Systematic Entomology, Inc.P. O. Box 141874Gainesville, FL 32614-1874 U. S. A.http://www.centerforsystematicentomology.org/Insecta Mundi is a journal primarily devoted to insect systematics, but articles can be published onany non-marine arthropod taxon. Manuscripts considered for publication include, but are not limited to,systematic or taxonomic studies, revisions, nomenclatural changes, faunal studies, book reviews, phylo-genetic analyses, biological or behavioral studies, etc. Insecta Mundi is widely distributed, and refer-enced or abstracted by several sources including the Zoological Record, CAB Abstracts, etc.As of 2007, Insecta Mundi is published irregularly throughout the year, not as quarterly issues. Asmanuscripts are completed they are published and given an individual number. Manuscripts must bepeer reviewed prior to submission, after which they are again reviewed by the editorial board to insurequality. One author of each submitted manuscript must be a current member of the Center for System-atic Entomology.Managing editor: Paul E. Skelley, e-mail: insectamundi@gmail.comProduction editor: Michael C. Thomas, e-mail: insectamundi@gmail.comEditorial board: J. H. Frank, M. J. PaulsenSubject editors: J. Eger, A. Rasmussen, F. Shockley, G. Steck, A. Van Pelt, J. ZaspelPrinted copies deposited in libraries of:CSIRO, Canberra, ACT, AustraliaMuseu de Zoologia, São Paulo, BrazilAgriculture and Agrifood Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, CanadaThe Natural History Museum, London, EnglandMuzeum i Instytut Zoologii Pan, Warsaw, PolandNational Taiwan University, Taipei, TaiwanCalifornia Academy of Sciences, San Francisco, CA, USAFlorida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Gainesville, FL, USAField Museum of Natural History, Chicago, IL, USANational Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, USAElectronic copies in PDF format:Printed CD mailed to all members at end of year.Florida Center for Library Automation: http://purl.fcla.edu/fcla/insectamundiUniversity of Nebraska-Lincoln, Digital Commons: http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/insectamundi/Author instructions available on the Insecta Mundi page at:http://www.centerforsystematicentomology.org/insectamundi/Printed Copy ISSN 0749-6737On-Line ISSN 1942-1354CD-ROM ISSN 1942-136210109: 1-5 2010Mecidea longula Stål (Heteroptera: Pentatomidae: Pentatominae:Mecideini) is established in south FloridaJoseph E. Eger, Jr.Dow AgroSciences, LLC2606 S. Dundee St.Tampa, FL 33629jeeger@dow.comThomas T. DobbsUnited States Department of AgricultureAnimal and Plant Health Inspection ServicePlant Protection and QuarantineMiami Inspection StationP.O. Box 66-0520Miami, FL 33266Abstract. A Caribbean species of Mecidea Dallas, M. longula Stål, apparently established in south Florida, isreported from the United States for the first time. Specimens were first collected in February 2008 in a light trapoperated in Miami-Dade County, Florida. Collections in that trap have continued through the present. Searchesnear the trap location resulted in several specimens being taken from smutgrass, Sporobolus indicus (L.), an exoticgrass now established throughout much of the southeastern United States. The three North American species ofMecidea are keyed and illustrated. In addition to the Florida locality, M. longula is reported for the first time fromthe British Virgin Islands, St. Kitts, St. Martin, and the Turks and Caicos Islands.Key Words. Stink bug, first record, Florida, new host record, distribution.IntroductionThe genus Mecidea Dallas currently contains 19 species and was revised by Sailer (1952). It is theonly New World genus in the tribe Mecideini and can be recognized within the Pentatomidae by thepresence on the abdominal venter of a longitudinal band of striations on the basal 3 or more segments(Rolston and McDonald 1979). Species of Mecidea are found in all arid tropical and adjacent temperateregions of the world with the exception of the Australasian Region. There are four species in the NewWorld, M. major Sailer, M. minor Ruckes, M. pampeana Sailer, and M. longula Stål. Until 1946, M.longula was the only species recognized from the New World. Records of M. longula from the UnitedStates refer to M. major, M. minor or both (Sailer 1952). Froeschner (1988) reports M. major from thefollowing US states: AZ, AR, IL, KS, MO, OK and TX. Brailovsky (1986) reported it from Mexico. Mecideaminor was reported from AZ, AR, CA, IA, MO, NM, OK, SD, TX and northern Mexico (Froeschner 1988).Mecidea pampeana was described from the arid regions of Argentina (Sailer 1952). Distribution of M.longula was given by Sailer (1952) as St. Bartholomew Island, Antigua, and Puerto Rico. Perez-Gelabertand Thomas (2005) also reported it from Hispaniola and Rider (2007) listed it from Montserrat.There are no endemic species of Mecidea in Florida. Mead (1988) reported finding a single specimen ofM. major on a car hood in St. Petersburg Beach, FL. Tropical Storm Keith had made landfall near St.Petersburg just two days before his finding and the single specimen may have been blown in by the storm.Subsequent collecting trips to the same area by the author JEE did not reveal any additional specimensand we have not seen other specimens from Florida since that time. So M. major apparently did notestablish in Central Florida at that time.Light traps have proven useful for detecting certain insect fauna in various habitats (e.g. Frost 1964,Thomas and Thomas 1994). They have been successfully deployed in monitoring programs initiated byvarious governmental agencies, resulting in new detections and/or range extensions of many heteropter-ous insects (e.g. Dobbs 2003, Dobbs and Henry 2008, Henry and Smith 1979, Henry et al. 2005, Hribarand Henry 2007, Wheeler et al. 1983). With these facts in mind, USDA-APHIS-PPQ in October 20072 • I NSECTA M UNDI 0109, January 2010 EGER AND DOBBSbegan operating and monitoring an ultraviolet light trap in the vicinity of Miami International Airport.The author TTD collected a number of specimens of M. longula in south Florida during 2008-2009 in sucha trap, suggesting that it is now established in the state. This paper provides a key and illustrations forspecies of Mecidea found in the United States to facilitate recognition of the introduced species, andreports a new host record for M. longula. In addition, new distribution records from the Caribbean aregiven.Figure 1-3. Mecidea spp. 1) Habitus, dorsal view, Mecidea longula. Dimensional line equals 1.0 mm. 2-3) Malegenital cup, lateral view, t = tubercle. Dimensional lines equal 0.5 mm. 2) Mecidea longula. 3) Mecidea minor.INSECTA MUNDI 0109, January 2010 • 3 MECIDEA LONGULA ESTABLISHED IN FLORIDAMaterials and MethodsA 22 watt Universal black light trap (BioQuipProducts, California) was operated twice weekly inMiami-Dade County, Florida, beginning in Octo-ber 2007. The trap was located in the immediatevicinity of Miami International Airport, just north-east of the intersection of NW 25th Street and Pe-rimeter Road (N 25° 47.98’ W 80° 18.44’). The trapwas placed on a 3 foot platform on the margin of apaved surface that is bordered by a disturbed areacontaining a mixture of weeds and shrubs. The lightwas turned on in the afternoon and operatedthroughout the night with the resultant capturesbeing collected the following morning.Specimens were removed from a jar contain-ing isopropyl alcohol, mounted, labeled and set asidefor later identification. Voucher specimens weredeposited in the Florida State Collection ofArthropods (Gainesville, FL) and the NationalMuseum of Natural History (Washington, DC).Key to species of Mecidea occurring in theUnited States.1. Abdomen with midventral dark line, thisfrequently discontinuous and missing onsome segments but usually present onat least one segment (Fig. 5); males withsmall tubercle on posterior ventralmargin of genital cup (Fig. 3).........................................M. minor Ruckes— Abdomen with midventral area usuallyunmarked (Fig. 4); males lackingtubercle on posterior ventral margin ofgenital cup (Fig. 2)..........................  22(1). Abdominal venter with large black macules just mesad of trichobothria, diameter of maculesusually 2 times or more that of spiracle on same segment, especially on basal segments (Fig. 7);length of males > 9.5 mm, females > 10.0 mm..............................................  M. major Sailer— Abdominal venter with black macules just mesad of trichobothria smaller, diameter of maculesusually not much more than diameter of spiracle on same segment (Fig. 6); smaller species,length of males < 9.5 mm, females < 10.0 mm..............................................  M. longula StålMecidea longula Stål 1854Fig. 1, 2, 4, 6Mecidea longula Stål, 1854: 233; Sailer, 1952: 484-485, pl. 47, figs. 7-9, pl. 48, figs. 35, 36, 54, 58.Diagnosis Medium size, elongate, dull stramineous above and below, with dark to concolorous puncta-tions. Pronotum strongly constricted anterior to humeri. Abdominal venter lacking midventral dark line;Figure 4-7. Abdomen of Mecidea spp. 4-5) Ventral view.6-7) Lateral view. 4) Mecidea longula. 5) Mecidea minor.6) Mecidea longula. 7) Mecidea major. Dimensional linesequal 1.0 mm.4 • I NSECTA M UNDI 0109, January 2010 EGER AND DOBBSdiameter of black macules mesad of trichobothria usually not much more than diameter of spiracle onsame segment. Posterior ventral margin of male genital cup smooth, lacking distinct tubercle.The specimens of M. longula in our collections look very much like M. major and M. minor. They tendto be smaller than the other two species and the dorsal coloration has more of a grayish tint. Sailer (1952)states that the pronotum is more strongly constricted anterior to the humeri in M. longula than in theother two species. This is true of many specimens, but appears to be somewhat variable.Material examined. ANTIGUA: Shirley Heights, 4-VII-92, H. V. & R. M. Baranowski (1 M, 1 F).BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS: Beef Island, nr airport, 15-IX-90, H. V. & R. M. Baranowski (5 M, 4 F);Tortola, 5 mi W Road Town, 16-IX-90, H. V. & R. M. Baranowski (1 F). DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: Prov.Pedernales, Cabo Rojo, Alcoa, 11-VI-98, R. E. Woodruff & P. E. Freytag, black light trap (1 M); Ibid, 12-VI-98, Ibid (1 M); Ibid, 13-VI-98, (1 M, 1 F); Ibid, 3-VII-1998, R. Woodruff and R. Baranowski, black lighttrap (1 M, 1 F); Prov. Pedernales, 10.2 km N Cabo Rojo, 9-VII-1996, M. C. Thomas (1 M); Prov. Pedernales,Cabo Rojo, Alcoa Headquarters, 20-24-VI-1999, Woodruff and Baranowski, black light trap (1 F). ST.KITTS: George Parish, nr Great Salt Pond, 16-VIII-92, H. V. & R. M. Baranowski (2 M, 3 F); 1 mi E ofBasseterre, 22-IX-90, H. V. & R. M. Baranowski (4 M, 6 F). ST. MARTIN: 2 mi N Orleans, 12-I-90, R. M.Baranowski (1 M, 3 F), Ibid, 13-I-90 (1 M, 5 F); N. of Great Salt Pond, 13-I-90, R. M. Baranowski (1 F);Philipsburg, 0-100 m, July 1979, N. L. H. Krauss (1 M). TURKS & CAICOS: Providenciales Isl., GraceBay, 19-X-93, R. M. & H. V. Baranowski, black light trap (1 F). USA-FLORIDA: Miami-Dade Co.Airport Fumigation Site, Light Trap, N25º47.98’, W80º18.44’, 20-II-2008, T. Dobbs (1 F); Ibid, 27-VII-2008 (1 M); Ibid 2-IX-2008 (1 F); Ibid 4-IX-2008 (1 M); Ibid 16-IX-2008 (1 M, 2 F); Ibid 18-IX-2008 (1 F); Ibid23-IX-2008 (2 M, 1 F); Ibid 25-IX-2008 (1 M, 2 F); Ibid 21-X-2008 (2 M); Ibid 23-X-2008 (1 M); Ibid 6-XI-2008 (1 M); Ibid 26-XI-2008 (1 F); Ibid 17-XII-2008 (1 F); Ibid 29-XII-2008 (1 M, 1 F); Ibid 12-I-2009 (1 F);Ibid 22-II-2009 ( 1 M); Ibid 10-IV-2009 (1 F); Miami-Dade Co., 9-XII-2008, Sporobulus indicus (L.) R. Br.Airport Fumigation Site, N25º47.98’, W80º18.44’, T. Dobbs and D. Lahanas (2 M, 1 F). Specimens aredeposited in the Florida State Collection of Arthropods (FSCA), the United States National Museum(USNM) and the collection of the two authors. In addition to Florida, this is the first report of M. longulafrom the British Virgin Islands, St. Kitts, St. Martin, and the Turks and Caicos Islands.Biology. Stoner (1925) reported finding large numbers of M. longula on radiate fingergrass, Chlorisradiata (Linnaeus), on the island of Antigua. The author TTD collected three adults on smutgrass,Sporolobus indicus (Linnaeus) R. Br., growing in an area adjacent to the light trap in Miami-DadeCounty. Smutgrass is an exotic grass native to Asia (Wunderlin and Hansen 2003), but now establishedwidely in the southeastern United States. Little is known about the specific biology of Mecidea spp. asidefrom the fact that host plants are generally considered to be grasses (Bundy 2004). The appearance ofspecimens in the Miami-Dade light trap and the surrounding environs from February through Decemberdemonstrates that M. longula is capable of surviving year-round in south Florida. We have not seen anyreports of these bugs as pests although Ruckes (1938) states that ‘in time M. longula [of authors, not Stål]may become a pest of major proportions’. Additional study is needed to better understand the currentdistribution of this bug in Florida and its potential as an economic pest.AcknowledgmentsWe thank R. M. Baranowski, University of Florida, for the gift of specimens, S. E. Halbert (FSCA) forthe loan of specimens and review of manuscript, R.L Mears, United States Department of HomelandSecurity, for the identification of the host plant, and Aida de la Cruz, Maria Gavito and Victor Peña,USDA-APHIS-PPQ for assistance with the operation of the light trap, and Julieta Brambila, USDA-APHIS-PPQ for review of the manuscript.Literature CitedBrailovsky, H. 1986. Hemiptera-Heteroptera de Mexico XXXVII: tres nuevas especies y nuevos registrosde la familia Pentatomidae. Anales del Instituto de Biología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma deMéxico, Ser. Zoología 57(2): 281-298.INSECTA MUNDI 0109, January 2010 • 5 MECIDEA LONGULA ESTABLISHED IN FLORIDABundy, C. S. 2004. The genus Mecidea (Heteroptera: Pentatomidae) in New Mexico. Southwestern Ento-mologist 29(4): 305-307.Dobbs, T. T. 2003. Black light survey of selected arthropods in Everglades National Park. InvestigatorsAnnual Report. EVER-2002-SCI-0072. National Park Service; Florida City, FL. 6 p.Dobbs, T. T., and T. J. Henry. 2008. Update on the establishment of Paragonatas divergens in Florida.Florida Entomologist 91(3): 477-478.Froeschner, R. C. 1988. Family Pentatomidae Leach, 1815. The stink bugs. p. 544-597, figs. 104-121.In: T. J. Henry and R. C. Froeschner (eds.). Catalog of the Heteroptera, or true bugs, of Canada andthe Continental United States. E. J. Brill; Leiden. xix + 958 p., 161 figs.Frost, S. W. 1964. Insects taken in light traps at the Archbold Biological Station, Highlands County,Florida. Florida Entomologist 47(2):129-161.Henry, T. J., C. V. Covell, Jr., and A. G. Wheeler, Jr. 2005. An annotated list of the Miridae (Hemi-ptera-Heteroptera) of Kentucky. Journal of the New York Entomological Society 113(1-2): 24-76.Henry, T. J., and C. L. Smith. 1979. An annotated list of the Miridae of Georgia (Hemiptera-Heteroptera).Journal of the Georgia Entomological Society 14(3): 212-220.Hribar, L. J., and T. J. Henry. 2007. Empicoris subparallelus (Hemiptera-Heteroptera: Reduviidae), apredatory bug new to the fauna of Florida. Florida Entomologist 90(4): 738-741.Mead, F. W. 1988. Insect detection. A stink bug, Mecidea major Sailer. Tri-ology, Entomology, Nematol-ogy, Pathology, Technical Report, Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services 27(11):6.Perez-Gelabert, D. E., and D. B. Thomas. 2005. Stink bugs (Pentatomidae: Heteroptera) of the islandof Hispaniola, with seven new species from the Dominican Republic. Boletín de la Sociedad EntomológicaAragonesa 37: 319-352.Rider, D. A. 2007. Identifications, Montana State University, MTEC, http://www.ndsu.nodak.edu/ndsu/rider/Pentatomoidea/Identifications/MTEC.htm (visited January, 2009).Rolston, L. H., and F. J. D. McDonald. 1979. Keys and diagnoses for the families of Western Hemi-sphere Pentatomoidea, subfamilies of Pentatomidae and tribes of Pentatominae (Hemiptera). Journalof the New York Entomological Society 87(3): 189-207.Ruckes, H. 1938. Additions to an annotated list of pentatomids (Heteroptera) of New Mexico. Bulletin ofthe Brooklyn Entomological Society 33: 10-13.Sailer, R. I. 1952. A review of the stink bugs of the genus Mecidea. Proceedings of the United StatesNational Museum 102: 471-505.Stoner, D. 1925. Report on the Scutelleroidea collected by the Barbados-Antigua expedition from theUniv. of Iowa in 1918. University of Iowa Studies in Natural History 10(1): 1-17.Stål, C. 1854. Nya Hemiptera. Öfversigt af Kongliga Svenska Vetenskaps - Akademiens Förhandlingar11(8): 231-255.Thomas, A. W., and G. M. Thomas. 1994. Sampling strategies for estimating moth species diversityusing a light trap in a Northeastern Softwood Forest. Journal of the Lepidopterists’ Society 48: 85-105.Wheeler, A. G., Jr., T. J. Henry, and T. L. Mason, Jr. 1983. An annotated list of the Miridae of WestVirginia (Hemiptera-Heteroptera). Transactions of the American Entomological Society 109: 699-713.Wunderlin, R. P., and B. F. Hansen. 2003. Guide to vascular plants of Florida. University Press ofFlorida; Gainesville, FL. 787 p.Received November 10, 2009, Accepted December 17, 2009.6 • I NSECTA M UNDI 0109, January 2010 EGER AND DOBBS

Mecidea longula Stål (Heteroptera: Pentatomidae: Pentatominae: Mecideini) is established in south Florida

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