GENETIC VARIABILITY OF SPINED SOLDIER BUGS (HEMIPTERA: PENTATOMIDAE) SAMPLED FROM DISTINCT FIELD SITES AND LABORATORY COLONIES IN THE UNITED STATES

Authors

Fatima Mustafa, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Muhammad Ullah, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
Kathleen M. Kneeland, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
Thomas A. Coudron, USDA-ARS Biological Control of Insects Research LaboratoryFollow
W. Wyatt Hoback, Oklahoma State UniversityFollow
S. R. Skoda, USDA-ARSFollow
Jaime Molina-Ochoa, Universidad de ColimaFollow
John E. Foster, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow

Date of this Version

12-2013

Citation

Florida Entomologist 97(4), December 2014, pp. 1631-1639.

Comments

U.S. government work.

Abstract

The spined soldier bug, Podisus maculiventris (Say), is an important biological control agent of agricultural and forest pests; and it preys on eggs and larvae of lepidopteran and coleopteran species. Genetic variability among field samples collected from Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Florida and established laboratory colonies was examined using Amplified Fragment Length Polymorphism-Polymerase Chain Reaction (AFLP-PCR). Four AFLP primer pairs generated a total of 340 molecular markers for evaluation. Results from Analysis of Molecular Variance showed that the majority of the genetic variation occurred within populations (individuals from each sample site). Nei’s method indicated reduced genetic diversity in laboratory populations compared to field populations. No major differences or deficiencies were apparent among the field samples from different areas or among the laboratory reared samples. We conclude that field populations are panmictic and laboratory reared spined soldier bug could be useful as biological control agents in the field.