A Small Brown Invader

In October 2019, an Oklahoma State University student found the first recorded specimen of a new stinky pest in Oklahoma.

Rodrigo Solis, a sports media sophomore, discovered a brown marmorated stink bug, Halyomorpha halys, at his family’s home in Guthrie, Oklahoma.

“I was taking entomology at the time, so I was collecting bugs for extra credit,” Solis said. “The bug was just climbing on the doorway, so I put it in a jar and took it to my professor.”

Wyatt Hoback, associate professor in the OSU Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology, teaches ENTO 2003 Insects in Society, a class for students who are not majoring in entomology. In the course, he gives his students an opportunity after their first exam to collect live or dead insects for extra credit points, he said.

The insect specimens students bring are kept for research purposes, he added.

“This allows us to see what is going on with the insects in Oklahoma,” Hoback said.

Eric Rebek, professor in the OSU Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology, said the brown marmorated stink bug is an exotic invasive species. This particular bug is native to Asia, he added.

“Many of our plant pests that are invasive are exotic, and it is usually because they are coming in a lot of different commodities that are shipped to the U.S.,” Rebek said.

Once an invasive insect is introduced to a new location it can have a devastating impact on agricultural and horticultural crops through its feeding habits, he added.

The brown marmorated stink bug feeds on small fruits, vegetables and large-scale agricultural crops like wheat, he said.

“This bug also is kind of a double-edged sword,” Rebek said. “It is a pest through its feeding activities, so it’s a direct pest on a lot of crops we grow, but then also it is known as a nuisance pest because it invades people’s homes.”

The stink bugs will overwinter in people’s homes and can be there in overwhelming numbers, Rebek said. This is not an issue in Oklahoma yet, he added.

“This particular insect has been found in all of the surrounding states— Texas, Kansas, Arkansas, and New Mexico,” Rebek said.

After the first Oklahoma discovery of the stink bug in late 2019, more specimens have been collected in the state, Rebek added.

“We are starting to see them in more places, so we are concerned about this becoming a major problem,” Rebek said. “If we find a lot more, it could be a serious problem, but first, we need to see where it is occurring in the state and how prevalent it is going to be.”

Hoback said offering students an opportunity to collect bugs for extra credit may help determine how far across Oklahoma the brown marmorated stink bug has spread.

Students in Hoback’s 2020 class received a special trap, designed and provided by Trécé Inc., to capture the brown marmorated stink bug. Using the traps, students discoved two brown marmorated stink bugs: one in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and one in Ft. Gibson, Oklahoma.

“It’s bad the bug is here,” Hoback said. “But it’s exciting we get to have non-majors participate and see that something simple, like putting out traps and providing data, allows us to generate information.”

TARYN LORD

Story by Taryn Lord of Alfalfa County Oklahoma

HELP OSU ENTOMOLOGY TRACK STINK BUGS

The Oklahoma State University Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology is interested in finding more specimens of the brown marmorated stink bug in the state.

Eric Rebek, professor in the OSU Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology, said if Oklahomans find a bug that looks like the brown marmorated stink bug, he and his colleagues would like to know about it.

“If they are not sure what they are looking at, they can always bring it to their county extension office,” Rebek said, “or they can bring it to campus to our diagnostic lab.”

Overall, if more brown marmorated stink bugs are found in Oklahoma this could be a serious problem for farmers, plant growers and homeowners, Rebek added.

This brown marmorated stink bug specimen was found in Guthrie, Oklahoma, by OSU student Rodrigo Solis.

Photo by Charlie Konemann.