EFFECT OF VAIRIMORPHA SP.¹ ON SURVIVAL OF GEOCORIS PUNCTIPES² IN THE LABORATORY

Survival of Geocoris punctipes (Say) (Hemiptera: Lygaeidae) after ingestion of fall armyworm, Spodoptera frugiperda (J. E. Smith), tissues infected with Vairimorpha sp. (Microspora: Microsporida) was studied in the laboratory. In six tests involving 532 adult G. punctipes, survival averaged 38.1 days when infected larvae were consumed and 42.9 days when healthy larvae were eaten. These means were significantly different (P < 0.05). There was no germination of Vairimorpha spores or development of the pathogen in G. punctipes. Differences in survival between treated and control groups were attributed to ingestion of a non-nutritive meal equivalent to a brief period of starvation. The insect should be able to compensate in its natural habitat by seeking other prey. We believe the potential of this insect as a vector in spore dispersal outweighs the relatively minor effects of spore ingestion observed in the laboratory.