Recent Research on Invasive Weeds at the European Biological Control Laboratory (EBCL)

United States Department of AgricultureAgricultural Research ServiceMontferrier-sur-Lez, France

Lincoln Smith, Marie-Claude Bon, Gaylord Desurmont, Javid Kashefi,René Sforza, Mélanie Tannières, Massimo Cristofaro, Francesca Marini,

John Goolsby, Brian Rector, Biljana Vidovic, Daniel E. Winkler, Patrick J. Moran

Solutions from Nature

EBCL labs in France and Greece

Other USDA-supported labs:Argentina – South American Biological Control Laboratory (FuEDEI)Australia – Australian Biological Control Laboratory China - Sino-American Biocontrol Lab

CABI – Delemont, Switzerland

OBCL Newsletter

DOWNLOAD AT:http://www.ars-ebcl.org

Overseas Biological Control Laboratories

Australian Biological Control Laboratory (ABCL), Australia

European Biological Control Laboratory (EBCL), France

Foundation for the Study of Invasive Species (FuEDEI), Argentina

Sino-American Biocontrol Laboratory (SinoABL), China

European Biological Control Laboratory

Quarantine for insects and pathogens

Field garden experimentsGlasshouses

Weed TargetsFrench broom (Genista monspessulana)Giant reed (Arundo donax)Hoary cress (Lepidium draba) Medusahead (Taeniatherum caput-medusae)Yellow starthistle (Centaurea solstitialis)Also support:African wire grass (Ventenata dubia)Russian thistle (Salsola tragus)Saltcedar (Tamarix spp.) Scotch thistle (Onopordum spp.) Swallow-worts (Vincetoxicum spp.)? Sahara mustard (Brassica tournefortii)

Solutions from Nature

French Broom (Genista monspessulana)

http://plants.usda.gov

Chemical ecology of psyllid Arytinnis hakani (Gaylord Desurmont)

Chloé Descombe

French broomGenista monspessulana

Specificity & impact of weevil Lepidapion argentatum (René Sforza)

www.gonhs.org/Lepidapionargentatum.htm

French broom killed by psyllid (Arytinnis hakani) in Australia

4 Sept. 2009, A. Sheppard, CSIRO

© Br. Alfred Brousseau, Saint Mary's College

French Broom Psyllid(Arytinnis hakani)

Kills Fr. broom in Australia.27 lupine species have been tested.Can develop on some lupines.Field testing in France.

Laboratory choice tests: Lupines vs. French broom

Develops in seeds ... T. Thomann

and in stem galls

René Sforza (EBCL), Thierry Thomann (CSIRO)

French Broom WeevilLepidapion argentatum

seed

s / p

od

Exit holepresent

Larva presentUninfested

viable

aborted

consumed

40% reduction of viable seed

Impact of Lepidapion argentatum on French broomseed production

Solutions from NatureR. Sforza

Presence of galls on 6 Broom species, and 2 lupine species

Ste

ms

with

gal

ls(%

)

6 Brooms 2 Lupines Thermopsis Astragalus

Solutions from Nature

Host Plant Specificity of Lepidapion argentatum on 32 plant species

R. Sforza

No-Choice Oviposition Tests

Giant Reed (Arundo donax)

Glen county CDFA gall wasp release site

Biological Control Agents for ArundoStem tip-galling wasp

Tetramesa romanaadventive in southern CA; Released in TX in 2007;

20% decrease biomass in 5 yrs

Root- and stem-feeding armored scale

Rhizaspidiotus donacis -Released in TX, CA

Goolsby et al. 2015. Biocontrol Science and Technology

Shipments of Arundo Agents

Javid Kashefi, Alex ChaskopoulouJohn Goolsby, Madeline Marshall (ARS, Edinburg, TX)

Leaf sheath minerLasioptera donacis

Petition approved

Oviposition by single females to establish nematode-free infestations for shipment to Texas

Tripius gyraloura, 1) Cluster of parasitic juveniles (arrow) in a dissected female fly; 2) Free-living infective female. Scale-bars: 1) 144 µm; 20 39 µm.

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

January February March April May June July August September October November December

Aver

age

Cryp

tone

vra

adul

ts (m

ean

+ SE

)

Month

Average Cryptonevra sp. adults caught on sticky traps (7 sites)

Arundo Shoot Fly

Gaylord DesurmontJohn Goolsby, (ARS, Edinburg, TX)

Arundo flyCryptonevra sp.

• Collection of flies from Phragmites and Arundo

• Seasonal abundance• Potential efficacy• Integrative taxonomy

(morphology & DNA)

Medusahead(Taeniatherum caput-medusae)

Frederiksen S. 1986. Revision of Taeniatherum (Poaceae). Nordic Journal of Botany 6(4):389-397.

T. caput-medusae T. asperum T. crinitum

R. Sforza, B.G. Rector, S. Novak

Eriophyid mite on medusahead

Brian Rector, BBCA & cooperators

Aculodes altamurgiensis

Other Prospective Agents of Medusahead

Midge? But so far, only Eulophid parasitoids have been reared out

Francesca Marini & Massimo Cristofaro (BBCA), Javid Kashefi (EBCL)

Moth larva inside leaf

Hoary Cress: Lepidium draba

Root Galling Weevil Ceutorhynchus assimilis

One host race strictly associated with L. draba,distributed in Southern France/Northern Spain

1

98

73

29(19)

30(1)28(1)

27(9)26(1) 25(1)

24(1)23(3)

22(3)

21 (15)

20(1)31(1)

19(5)18(1)17(1)

16(7)

15(1)14(4)

13(5)

12(6)

11(2)10(3)

(6)

6(1) (1)5(1)

4 (5)(1) 2(1) (1)

0.0005 substitutions/site

96, 88

61, 57

96, 90

86, -

60, -

61

59, 51

53, -

59, -

65, 60

97, 95

98, 98

64, 6663, 59

59, -

62, 61

Molecular Geneticsdistinguished aCryptic Species

Fumanal et al., 2005 Journal of Biotechnology 19:15-19.Marie-Claude Bon, EBCL

Yellow StarthistleCentaurea solstitalis

J. DiTomaso, UC Davis

Yellow starthistle seedhead weevil, Larinus filiformis

Multiplied weevil from Bulgaria for future testing.

Russian thistleSalsola australis Salsola collinaSalsola gobicolaSalsola tragus Salsola ryaniiSalsola paulsenii[not S. kali]

Salsola types

Hrusa & Gaskin. 2008. Madroño 55(2) 113–131.

Russian thistle (Salsola tragus)

BBCA conducting field host specificity test in Italy.

Established colony at EBCL from Greece.

Eriophyid miteAceria salsolae

L. Smith (EBCL) F. Marini, M. Crisotofaro (BBCA)

Sahara mustard (Brassica tournefortii)

ü first identified in 1927 in the Coachella Valley, Californiaü It is believed that the species was accidently introduced with the importation of date palms

from the Middle Eastü Likely origin from Morocco or Jordan (ddRADseq)

Daniel Winkler (University of California, Irvine)

AlexandraChaskopoulou

mosquitoes &sand flies

EBCL scientists

Marie-Claude Bonmol. geneticsInsects leader

René SforzaentomologyWeeds leader

[vacant]entomology

Javid Kashefiexploration

Gaylord Desurmontquarantine / entomology(chemical ecology)

Mélanie Tannièresmicrobiology

Dawn Gundersen-RindalDirector, Dawn.Gundersen-Rindal@ars.usda.gov

Thes

salo

niki

G

reec

eFranck HérardEntomologyRetired 12/17