First report of Diabrotica speciosa (Germar, 1824) and Maecolaspis trivialis (Boheman, 1858) (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) in the angel’s trumpet Brugmansia suaveolens (Humb. & Bonpl. Ex Willd.) Bercht. & J. Presl. (Solanaceae) in Brazil

Primeiro registro de Diabrotica speciosa (Germar, 1824) e Maecolaspis trivialis (Boheman, 1858) (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) em trombeteira Brugmansia suaveolens (Humb. & Bonpl. Ex Willd.) Bercht. & J. Presl. (Solanaceae) in Brazil

Diabrotica speciosa (Germar, 1824) and Maecolaspis trivialis (Boheman, 1858) are important defoliators of the Chrysomelidae family. The species are polyphagous and have been reported in different crops. For example, soybeans, beans, corn, potatoes, tobacco, and peanuts are D. speciosa hosts (Walsh et al., 2020). Similarly, the genus Maecolaspis has also been reported in some crops, such as legumes (Fabaceae family) (Miwa and Meinke, 2015) and vineyards (Agrain et al., 2016). In Brazil, the occurrence of Maecolaspis is frequently observed in soybean crops (Moscardi et al., 2012); however, information about the host plants of this defoliator is scarce.

In addition to cultivated plants, the occurrence of chrysomelids in toxic plants has also been reported in the literature. In the United States, D. speciosa has been reported in the angel’s trumpet Brugmansia arborea (L.) Lagerheim (Solanaceae) (Walsh, 2003). This ornamental plant has medicinal properties (Petricevich et al., 2020) and chemical defense mechanisms against insect herbivory (Arab et al., 2012; Gonçalves et al., 2019). However, some herbivores can develop detoxification strategies that allow the ingestion of toxic plant leaf tissue (Pinto et al., 2016). Therefore, this study aims to record the occurrence of D. speciosa and M. trivialis associated with the angel’s trumpet Brugmansia suaveolens (Humb. & Bonpl. Ex Willd.) Bercht. & J. Presl. (Solanaceae) for the first time in Brazil.

Two B. suaveolens trumpet plants were observed in a residential area of Londrina (23°17'34”S, 51°10'24”W) in January 2016. The plants were monitored for 5 d to examine the herbivory (Figure 1), and the insects were later collected. Herbivory was proven by observing the insects damaging the plants for 30 min.d^-1. Although the level of defoliation has not been quantified, it was observed between 20-40% of leaf injury. On the other hand, flowers were 100% injured by chrysomelids. The individuals were then immediately captured using a sweep net. The collected insects were placed in a plastic bag containing cotton soaked with ethyl acetate. The samples were sent to the insect taxonomy laboratory of the State University of Londrina, where the species were identified according Boheman (1858) and Marques (1941) descriptions.

Figure 1
(a) Diabrotica speciosa defoliating Brugmansia suaveolens; (b) Maecolaspis trivialis defoliating B. suaveolens; (c) D. speciosa damaging B. suaveolens flower; (d) B. suaveolens damaged by D. speciosa.

In total, 25 chrysomelids consisting of two species, namely M. trivialis (n= 19 specimens) and D. speciosa (n= 6 specimens), were collected. Although D. speciosa has already been reported in angel’s trumpet in the United States (Walsh, 2003), this is the first record in Brazil, while the genus Maecolaspis is associated for the first time to Brugmansia. The association of herbivores with angel’s trumpet has been reported by other researchers. For example, Taylor and Kent (2013) included an unknown species of Brugmansia among the hosts of Acizzia solanicola Kent & Taylor, 2010 (Hemiptera: Psyllidae). Similarly, Pinto et al. (2020) observed the presence of the leafhopper Alchisme grossa (Fairmaire, 1846) (Hemiptera: Membracidae) in B. suaveolens. In Brazil, Epilachna vigintioctopunctata (Fabricius, 1775) (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) larvae were also found in B. suaveolens (Casari and Teixeira, 2015). Although the trumpet plants contain tropane alkaloids, which are toxic to insects (Arab et al., 2012), this study suggests that D. speciosa and M. trivialis have developed defense mechanisms. Even if the mechanisms are not well understood, it is likely that the plant’s alkaloids are ingested and kidnapping, as already evidenced for A. grossa in trumpet plants (Pinto et al., 2016).

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Publication Dates

• Publication in this collection
  27 Oct 2021
• Date of issue
  2023

History

• Received
  20 Jan 2021
• Accepted
  17 June 2021