Insect herbivores associated with the introduced weed Bidens frondosa L. (Asteraceae) in Korea,and their potential role as augmentative biological control agents |
| |
Authors: | Yong‐Gu HAN Youngho CHO Youngjin KIM Heonmyoung LIM Ohseok KWON Sang‐Ho NAM |
| |
Institution: | 1. Department of Biology, Daejeon University, Daejeon 300‐716, Korea;2. Division of Applied Biosciences, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Kyungpook National University, Daegu 702‐701, Korea |
| |
Abstract: | The annual herb Bidens frondosa L., native to North America, is an invasive weed. Currently no information is available on the insect herbivores associated with this weed in Korea. A survey was carried out at two‐weekly intervals from May to October 2008 at two sites, and the incidence and abundance of various insect herbivores studied. A total nine species of insects was recorded and among them the defoliating caterpillar Hadjina chinensis (Wallengren) (Lepidoptera) was the only species known to have host plants restricted to genus Bidens. Further host specificity studies are required to evaluate the potential of this insect as a candidate for augmentative biological control agent for B. frondosa in Korea. All other insect species are either polyphagous or known crop pests. |
| |
Keywords: | Bidens frondosa biological control Hadjina chinensis insect community paddy weed |
|
|