published by AgFax
By Denise Attaway, Clemson University
Kudzu bugs may have met their match in one Clemson University graduate student.
The kudzu bug is an invasive soybean pest first discovered in Georgia in 2009. It has since spread to 13 states and Washington, D.C. Research by Francesca Stubbins, an entomology graduate research assistant at the Edisto Research and Education Center (REC), shows for the first time that mermithid nematodes can infect and kill the insects. Stubbins’ research involved collecting kudzu bugs from soybean fields. Nematodes — long, slender, parasitic worms — were found in the abdomens of some of the dissected female insects. Continue reading →
Filed under: news | Tagged: biocontrol, biological control, Clemson University, Edisto Research and Education Center, kudzu bug, mermithid nematode, Mermithidae, natural enemies | Leave a comment »