Abstract
After the arrival of the Asian citrus psyllid Diaphorina citri Kuwayama (Hemiptera: Psyllidae) in Florida, several studies mentioned the presence of ants where D. citri was present, but there was no clarification of their specific interaction with the psyllid. The goal of this study was to elucidate the role of ants in the biological control of D. citri by observing ant behavior and by determining if ant presence, modified by exclusion manipulations, affected parasitism of D. citri by Tamarixia radiata (Waterston, 1922) (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae), an introduced parasitoid of the psyllid, when the insect was infesting orange jasmine, Murraya paniculata (L.) Jack (Sapindales: Rutaceae) and Persian lime, Citrus latifolia Tanaka (Sapindales: Rutaceae). During a preliminary survey on M. paniculata in Homestead, Florida, we observed 2 ant species in association with D. citri, i.e., the big headed ant, Pheidole megacephala Fabricius, and the rover ant, Brachymyrmex obscurior Forel. In 2 ant exclusion experiments, using a 2-cm-wide barrier of Tanglefoot®, P. megacephala was the only ant species found in M. paniculata while P. megacephala, B. patagonicus and Solenopsis invicta Buren were observed in C. latifolia. The number of P. megacephala found in the unprotected flushes in M. paniculata fluctuated between 0.15 and 0.5 per flush while in C. latifolia the number of ants, pooled across species, varied between 1.44 and 6.61. In M. paniculata flushes from Tanglefoot-treated plants, 20.36% of the nymphs were parasitized by T. radiata compared to 0.39% parasitism in untreated control flushes where ants had not been excluded. Fifty-eight percent of the psyllid nymphs were parasitized in the C. latifolia Tanglefoot® ant-exclusion flushes compared with 8.57% parasitism in the non-exclusion control. An additional experiment using the ant bait Extinguish Plus® (Hydramethylnon 0.365% S-Methoprene 0.250%) applied to the soil surrounding the trunk showed that the use of a granular bait can help to reduce ant populations and consequently increase the percentage parasitism of the Asian citrus psyllid.
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Claims 8
Claim · model-written summary
Two ant species occurred with psyllids on orange jasmine.
- Taxon
- M. paniculata
Murraya paniculatae1 - Interactor
- D. citri
Diaphorina citrie0pest - Outcome
- 2 ant species in association with D. citrie0
- Setting
- Homestead, Floridae1
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“we observed 2 ant species in association with D. citri, i.e., the big headed ant, Pheidole megacephala Fabricius, and the rover ant, Brachymyrmex obscurior Forel”
e1“on M. paniculata in Homestead, Florida”
Claim · model-written summary
Only P. megacephala was found on orange jasmine during ant exclusion experiments.
- Taxon
- M. paniculataMurraya paniculatae0
- Interactor
- P. megacephala
Pheidole megacephalae0other - Outcome
- P. megacephala was the only ant species founde0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“P. megacephala was the only ant species found in M. paniculata”
Claim · model-written summary
Three ant species occurred on Persian lime during ant exclusion experiments.
- Taxon
- C. latifolia
.jpg?width=60)
Citrus ×latifoliae0 - Interactor
- P. megacephalaPheidole megacephalae0other
- Second interactor
- B. patagonicus
Brachymyrmex patagonicuse0other - Outcome
- P. megacephala, B. patagonicus and Solenopsis invicta Buren were observede0
- Qualifier
- Solenopsis invicta Burene0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
.jpg?width=500)
Verbatim
e0“P. megacephala, B. patagonicus and Solenopsis invicta Buren were observed in C. latifolia”
Claim · model-written summary
P. megacephala numbers on unprotected orange jasmine flushes fluctuated from 0.15 to 0.5 per flush.
- Taxon
- M. paniculataMurraya paniculatae0
- Interactor
- P. megacephalaPheidole megacephalae0other
- Outcome
- number of P. megacephalae0
- Value
- 0.15 and 0.5 per flushe0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“The number of P. megacephala found in the unprotected flushes in M. paniculata fluctuated between 0.15 and 0.5 per flush”
Claim · model-written summary
Ant numbers on Persian lime ranged from 1.44 to 6.61 per flush.
- Taxon
- C. latifoliaCitrus ×latifoliae0
- Outcome
- number of ants, pooled across speciese0
- Value
- 1.44 and 6.61e0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“in C. latifolia the number of ants, pooled across species, varied between 1.44 and 6.61”
Claim · model-written summary
Ant exclusion raised psyllid nymph parasitism on orange jasmine to 20.36% versus 0.39% in controls.
- Taxon
- M. paniculataMurraya paniculatae0
- Treatment
- Tanglefoot-treated plantse0
- Interactor
- T. radiata
Tamarixia radiatae0parasite - Outcome
- nymphs were parasitized by T. radiatae0
- Direction
- increaseinferrede0
- Value
- 20.36%e0
- Qualifier
- 0.39%e0
- Comparator
- untreated control flushese0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“In M. paniculata flushes from Tanglefoot-treated plants, 20.36% of the nymphs were parasitized by T. radiata compared to 0.39% parasitism in untreated control flushes where ants had not been excluded”
Claim · model-written summary
Ant exclusion raised psyllid nymph parasitism on Persian lime to 58% versus 8.57% in controls.
- Taxon
- C. latifoliaCitrus ×latifoliae0
- Treatment
- Tanglefoot® ant-exclusione0
- Interactor
- psyllide0pest
- Outcome
- psyllid nymphs were parasitizede0
- Direction
- increaseinferrede0
- Value
- Fifty-eight percente0
- Qualifier
- 8.57%e0
- Comparator
- non-exclusion controle0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Fifty-eight percent of the psyllid nymphs were parasitized in the C. latifolia Tanglefoot® ant-exclusion flushes compared with 8.57% parasitism in the non-exclusion control”
Claim · model-written summary
Granular ant bait reduced ant populations and increased psyllid parasitism.
- Taxon
- Murraya paniculataMurraya paniculatat0
- Treatment
- granular baite0
- Interactor
- Asian citrus psyllidDiaphorina citrie0pest
- Outcome
- ant populationse0
- Direction
- reducee0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“the use of a granular bait can help to reduce ant populations and consequently increase the percentage parasitism of the Asian citrus psyllid”
t0“orange jasmine, Murraya paniculata”