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ChiroSurveillance: The Use of Native Bats to Detect the Invasive
Brown Marmorated Stink Bug
Brooke Maslo1,2*, Rafael Valentin1, Karen Leu1, Kathleen Kerwin1,
Amanda Bevan1, George C. Hamilton2,3, Nina H. Fefferman1, and Dina
M. Fonseca1,2,3
1Department
2Rutgers
of Ecology, Evolution and Natural Resources, Rutgers, The State University of New
Jersey
Cooperative Extension, New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station, Rutgers, The State
University of New Jersey
3Department
of Entomology, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey
Impacts of Invasive Insect
Pests to Agriculture
annual economic value of U.S. crop
losses by invasive insect pests:
$13 billion
annual costs for associated control
measures:
$500 million
invasive species management
strategies evolve with time since
introduction
management efficiency decreases
over time
Simberloff et al. 2013
Challenges of Monitoring &
Surveillance of BMSB
Current BMSB Monitoring Tools
black light traps
aggregation pheromones (MDT)
natural pheromones (SSRS, RSRS)
Neilsen et al. 2013
Bats as Agents of Invasive Species
Surveillance?
temperate insectivorous bats consume a diverse array
of insects
expansive foraging range is ~5km
central place foragers, returning to same roost nightly
easy to sample
bats may be important sentinels if:
1. they identify non-native species as prey
2. we can reliably detect non-native species in
bat guano (even when pest is rare)
Study Sites
apple/peach orchards with
resident maternity colonies
of big brown bats,
Eptesicus fuscus
Longmeadow Farms (Brad
Burke): ~30 bats
2 hectares
Strawberry Hill Farm
(Ross Kiesling): ~100 bats
23
hectares
WM Schober Sons (John
Schober): ~100 bats
121 hectares
Weekly Density of BMSB through Black
Light Trap Monitoring
quantified weekly trap counts of BMSB
used inverse distance weighted algorithm
to extrapolate statewide BMSB densities
generated weekly maps corresponding to
the 7 nights preceding guano collection
dates
Dietary Analysis of Bat
Guano for BMSB
Bat Guano Collection:
weekly collection of 100 intact fecal pellets from resident
colony of big brown bats; randomly subsampled 16-20
pellets for pooling
Sample Preparation
pulverization, DNA extraction
Molecular Analysis
quantitative polymerase chain reaction using a
BMSB-specific assay targeting the ITS region in the
rDNA
Bats Identify & Regularly
Consume BMSB
>50% of the pooled guano
samples (34/60) tested positive
for BMSB
Ct values ranged from 23.7-34.3
positive detections occurred even
at low BMSB densities
big brown bats detected BMSB 34 weeks earlier than black light
traps
Bat Predation of BMSB
is Density-Dependent
A
R2 = 0.121
120
BMSB Density
100
80
60
40
20
0
20
25
30
Ct Value
35
40
BUT… bat predation and black light traps
occur at different scales
Early Spring:
Mid-Summer:
Late Summer:
BMSB stage in woodlands
BMSB adults active in
fields
BMSB respond to
aggregation pheromones
Significance of Correlation Improves
With Data Transformation
A
R2 = 0.121
120
BMSB Density
100
80
60
40
20
0
20
B
25
30
Ct Value
35
40
R2 = 0.123
120
BMSB Density
100
80
60
40
20
0
20
25
30
Ct Value
35
40
Conclusions/Next Steps
Bats as Agents of Invasive Species Surveillance:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Big brown bats recognize BMSB as a common prey item across the
season
Density-dependent predatory response
Bats detected BMSB 3-4 weeks earlier than black light traps
currently testing chiroSurveillance on tufted apple budmoth, codling
moth, and Oriental fruit moth
Next Steps:
1.
2.
3.
Comparison of bat predation with newer pheromones needed to verify the
patterns identified here
Robust economic analyses to determine cost-effectiveness of
chirosurveillance
Can bats be effective agents of control?
Acknowledgements
Larry Katz
Anne Neilsen
George Hamilton
Dave Schmitt
Dean Polk
John Schober
Brad Burke
Ross Kiesling
Mike Russo
Doug Race
Joe Nichols
N.H. Fefferman
M. Valent
J.F. Gumbs
M. Hall
Danielle Podmayersky
Brittany Chrans
Chloe Lewis
Rachael Sacatelli