Antiteuchus tripterus (Fabricius, 1787) Dallas, 1851

Panizzi, Antônio Ricardo & Grazia, Jocélia, 2001, Stink Bugs (Heteroptera, Pentatomidae) And An Unique Host Plant In The Brazilian Subtropics, Iheringia, Série Zoologia 90, pp. 21-35 : 28-30

Antiteuchus tripterus .

Nymphs and adults occurred in relatively low numbers on privet ( fig. 6 ). Numbers of nymphs and adults peaked during May at late autumn, and adults also peaked in early summer (December).

Adults dorso-ventrally depressed, with dorsal surface testaceous to dark brown or black, densely punctured on pronotum and scutellum. Males usually darkerthan females. Median body length of females 12.0 mm (n = 10), and of males 11.0 mm (n = 10). Nymphs dark and flat. Eggs ( fig. 23 ) clear colored.

In the laboratory, no nymphs survived on privet berries. Although nymphs were recovered from privet fruits, they were also common on branches and on the tree trunk. We suspect that they feed to some degree on the branches and trunk, but this needs to be investigated further.

Antiteuchus tripterus is mentioned as a pest of cacao in several countries of South America and from the Caribbean islands ( CALLAN, 1944; LOZANO, 1955; LICERAS & CASTRO, 1987). Maternal care in A. tripterus and its relationship to scelionid egg parasitoids have been studied by EBERHARDT (1975).

Figures

Figs. 1-7. Seasonal abundance of nymphs and adults of the most common pentatomids found on privet Ligustrum lucidum during a one-year period in northern Paraná state, Brazil.

Fig. 21-23. Antiteuchus mixtus: 21, adult on fruits of privet; 22, fifth instar on a privet leaf; 23, egg mass of Antiteuchus tripterus on a privet leaf. (Scales: 3mm).