Chloris distichophylla Lag. (Poaceae) as stink bug (Pentatomidae) shelter in soybean and corn off-season in southern Brazil

Abstract

The objective of this study was to evaluate the composition and abundance of dormant bedbugs in Chloris distichophylla Lag (Poales: Poaceae) over the soybean and corn off-season. The work was carried out in the municipality of Cruz Alta, over the soybean and corn off-season between 2014 and 2018. Plants of C. distichophylla with different clump diameter were sampled, and the bugs contained in them were counted and submitted to data analysis for the evaluation of the composition, structure, and diversity of occurring species. At the end of the experiment, 3543 hibernating adults were counted and divided into six species: Euschistus heros (F.), Dichelops furcatus (F.), Dichelops melacanthus Dallas, Edessa meditabunda (F.), Edessa ruformaginata (De Geer) (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae). The species E. heros was the most abundant, followed by D. furcatus. The diameter of the clumps directly affects the population density of the stink bugs. Finally, C. distichophylla is shown as a hibernate favorable to the maintenance of the stink bug populations over the soybean and corn off-season.