Karpun N.N., Protsenko V.Ye., Borisov B.A., Shiryaeva N.V. 2018. [Discovery of the oak lace bug, Corythucha arcuata (Say) (Heteroptera: Tingidae) in the subtropical zone of the Black Sea coast of the Caucasus and forecast of a phytosanitary situation change in the region] // Euroasian Entomological Journal. Vol.17. No.2: 113–119 [in Russian, with English summary].
Russian Research Institute of Floriculture and Subtropical Crops, Yan Fabritsius Str. 2/28, Sochi 354002 Russia.
Production and research company «AgroBioTechnology», Kronstadt Boul. 7-4, Moscow 125212 Russia.
Sochi National Park, Moskovskaya Str. 21, Sochi 354000 Russia.
E-mail: nkolem@mail.ru; borborisov@mail.ru; natshir@rambler.ru.
doi: 10.15298/euroasentj.17.2.07
ABSTRACT. The oak lace bug Corythucha arcuata (Say, 1832) is a representative of the North American fauna of lace bugs (Heteroptera: Tingidae). The natural range of this species is located in the USA and Canada, the invasive one covers Europe and partly Asia. In Russia, the bug was first recorded in Krasnodar in 2015, and in 2016 its distribution expanded significantly within Krasnodar prov. and the Republic of Adygea. In September 2017, adults and larvae of this species were found in ornamental plantations of the Central, Khosta and Adler administrative districts of Sochi in 5 oak species (Quercus acutissima, Q. hartwissiana, Q. palustris, Q. petraea subsp. iberica and Q. variabilis) from 19, widely cultivated in landscapes of the region. The distribution of C. arcuata is currently local, settled plants are located in groups. During the observations, only individual leaves of Q. variabilis and Q. palustris were populated by the bug, and the crowns of Q. hartwissiana (tertiary relict species) were prematurely and markedly yellowed due to the mass reproduction of the phytophagous. The density of the bug settlement ranged from 1 to 102 individuals/leaf, the average density of the settlement varied from 2,1 individuals/leaf on Q. variabilis to 43,4 individuals/leaf on Q. hartwissiana. In the subtropics of the Black Sea coast of the Caucasus, the bug biology needs to be clarified. A vector of invasion into the researched region can be both movement of the pest with transport streams, and unintentional delivery with planting material. C. arcuata presents a great danger for a unique collection of the introduced species of the genus Quercus (65 taxons) in the park «Arboretum». There are some reasons to expect a wider distribution of oak lace bugs in the ornamental plantations of Sochi in the near future and its appearance in the natural ecosystems of Colchis forests on the territory of Sochi National Park and in the Caucasian State Natural Biosphere Reserve. This will require more careful phytosanitary monitoring of plantations and the development of new methods for effective plants protection.
KEY WORDS: oak lace bug, Corythucha arcuata, invasive species, humid subtropics, Black Sea coast of the Caucasus.