Brown marmorated stink bug
The brown marmorated stink bug (Halyomorpha halys) is an exotic pest with the potential to cause major damage to agricultural crops and other plants.
Background
This pest is found in China, Japan, and Korea, and it has aggressively invaded the US. While there have been border detections in Victoria and Western Australia, brown marmorated stink bug (BMSB) has not been found in South Australia.
BMSB stows away inside boxes and packaging or attached to the outside of shipping containers. They also seek shelter in vehicles and heavy machinery.
Between September and April each year, there is a heightened risk of the bugs hitchhiking on cargo imported from the US, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Romania, and Russia.
The Australian Government conducts seasonal measures against BSMB by targeting high-risk imported items. PIRSA, through Biosecurity SA, also maintains vigilance against the pest.
Learn more in the NSW Government biosecurity video.
Impacts
BMSB is known to feed on more than 300 hosts, including nuts and grains, apple, bean, berries, citrus, corn, cotton, fig, grape, peach, pear, raspberry, soybean, tomato, nursery stock, woody ornamental plants, and weed species.
Adults feed on mature and immature fruit, while nymphs feed on leaves, stems as well as fruit. The bug’s saliva causes significant damage to plant tissues when feeding. It disfigures fruit which becomes unmarketable, resulting in control costs and production losses.
While not regarded as a major risk to human health, BMSB can cause an allergic reaction in some people who come into contact with them.
These bugs are also regarded as a nuisance pest as they can enter vehicles, homes and factories in large numbers, looking for places to shelter over winter. They have a long-lasting, foul odour when disturbed.
Identification
Adult BMSB are 12 to 17mm long with a distinctive shield shape. They are a mottled colour with a faint reddish tinge. The underside of the body is white or pale tan, sometimes with grey or black markings. The legs are brown with faint white banding.
While there are similar species of stink bugs in Australia, BMSB have black and white banding around the edge of the abdomen with white bands on the last 2 antennal segments.
Juveniles and nymphs are similar to adults, only smaller and without fully developed wings.
Four nymphal stages of BMSB, adult male, and adult female – photo: W. Hershberger. USDA, stopbmsb.org.