The Asian longhorned beetle is native to China and Korea, and was found for the first time outside its native habitat in the U.S.A. in 1996, with subsequent detections being made in Canada and several European countries. We review the taxonomy, distribution, basic biology, behaviour, ecology and management of endemic and exotic Anoplophora glabripennis , including information that is available in the extensive Chinese literature. This species has caused massive mortality of Populus species in China and models have demonstrated that it could become established in many locations worldwide. Anoplophora glabripennis is polyphagous but prefers Acer , Salix and Populus , section Aigeiros . Although A. glabripennis adults do not disperse far when surrounded by host trees, they have the potential to fly more than 2000 m in a season. Volatile organic compounds from preferred host trees are attractive to A. glabripennis and this attraction is heightened by drought stress. Males and females orientate to a volatile released by female A. glabripennis and males attempt to copulate after contacting a sex pheromone on the female cuticle. At present, A. glabripennis is being (or has been) eradicated from areas where it has been introduced. After detection, extensive surveys are conducted and, if breeding populations are detected, at the very least, infested trees are removed and destroyed. Close attention is paid to imported solid wood packaging material to prevent new introductions. Standard practice to control A. glabripennis in China is to spray insecticides in tree canopies. In North America, largely as a preventative measure, systemic insecticides are injected into trees. Entomopathogenic fungi have been developed for the control of A. glabripennis , and entomopathogenic nematodes, coleopteran and hymenopteran parasitoids and predatory woodpeckers have been investigated as biocontrol agents. Ecological control of A. glabripennis in China involves planting mixtures of preferred and nonpreferred tree species, and this practice can successfully prevent outbreaks.

BACKGROUND: The pine wood nematode (PWN) Bursaphelenchus xylophilus is the causal agent of pine wilt disease (PWD). This disease is a serious threat to pine forests globally. The fuca gene encodes α‐L‐fucosidase, which plays crucial roles in numerous biological and pathological processes in bacteria, fungi, plants and animals. To find promising control strategies against PWD, we investigated the expression and functions of Bxy‐fuca in B. xylophilus.RESULTS: Bxy‐fuca encoding α‐L‐fucosidase is highly conserved within the deduced functional domains and key residues. It is expressed continuously across all developmental stages of B. xylophilus. mRNA in situ hybridization demonstrated that Bxy‐fuca was mainly localized in the body wall muscles and intestine. RNA interference indicated that the zygotic expression of Bxy‐fuca was indispensable for embryogenesis. The rate of B. xylophilus egg hatch was significantly decreased after Bxy‐fuca was interfered. Postembryonic silence of Bxy‐fuca resulted in a dramatic decrease in the longevity of and the total number of eggs produced by B. xylophilus. In addition, the motility of the nematode was greatly hampered with a significant drop in head thrashing frequency.CONCLUSION: Bxy‐fuca plays crucial roles in development, lifespan and reproduction of B. xylophilus. Our results provide promising hints for control of PWD by blocking embryogenesis and ontogenesis, decreasing nematode fecundity, and disrupting the connection between B. xylophilus and its vector beetle by preventing nematode movement into the tracheal system. © 2019 Society of Chemical Industry

The pine wood nematode (PWN), Bursaphelenchus xylophilus, is able to produce hundreds of thousands of offspring in a short time. Its mating behaviour might play a basic role in this marked fecundity. We investigated the features of the mating behaviour of B. xylophilus using long-time microscope video and repeated observations. The mating behaviour of B. xylophilus could be separated into a series of sequential sub-behaviours, including cruising, approaching, encountering, touching, hooping, locating, attaching, ejaculating, separating, quiescence and roaming. Overall, the process of mating behaviour could be divided into four different phases, searching, contacting, copulating and lingering; the mean times for these different phases varied significantly with 21.8 ± 2.0 min, 28.0 ± 1.9 min, 23.6 ± 0.7 min and 7.2 ± 0.5 min for each of the four phases, respectively. Attraction between the sexes was observed, indicating that sex pheromone(s) might be involved in mating behaviour of B. xylophilus. In addition, when one female was placed with three males, male-male competition was observed, which might be caused by mating-choice pressure from the female. Intra-sexual competition of females was also occasionally observed.

A protocol for investigating the mating behavior of the pinewood nematode, Bursaphelenchus xylophilus, is presented....