Current status and future prospects of biological control using the zoophytophagous mirid bug Nesidiocoris tenuis in Japan

Abstract: The zoophytophagous mirid bug Nesidiocoris tenuis is now widely used for
biological control of minute insect pests in Japanese protected horticulture. In southern parts of Japan, where indigenous populations are naturally distributed, they are collected using
secondary plants such as sesame Sesamum indicum and spider flowers Cleome hassleriana and released in greenhouses. In northern parts, where they can be rarely found in the field,
commercially available strains were used against whiteflies on tomatoes and thrips on
cucumbers. However, their longer generation period relative to their prey species requires
longer period to increase their population when pests are scarce. In such situations, banker
plants such as vervain Verbena x hybrida in addition to sesame and spider flowers are planted in greenhouses. Tracking their movements by using molecular markers proved that they effectively move around in these banker plants and crops. However, when they sticked on banker plants, violet LED light can be used to enhance their withdrawal from banker plants. Last problem is their phytophagy. It is well-known that necrotic rings appear on tomato plants when their density becomes extremely high. To reduce them, genomic breeding is now conducted based on high-quality genome data.