Citizen science to stop the spreading of the brown marmorated stink bug in Catalonia
The brown marmorated stink bug (Halyomorpha halys) is a hemipteran insect native from the Asian continent which became a new threat to the conservation of biodiversity in several countries it reached. This exotic invasive insect can affect around seventy plant species -fruit trees, ornamental ones, horticultural, and extensive crops- and cause economic losses related to agricultural products such as apples, peaches, peppers, tomatoes, corn and soy.
The brown marmorated stink bug (Halyomorpha halys) is a hemipteran insect native from the Asian continent which became a new threat to the conservation of biodiversity in several countries it reached. This exotic invasive insect can affect around seventy plant species -fruit trees, ornamental ones, horticultural, and extensive crops- and cause economic losses related to agricultural products such as apples, peaches, peppers, tomatoes, corn and soy.
Apart from its effects in the agricultural activity, this insect has a direct impact on urban habitats, since it seeks shelter in houses in winter, and it can be a nuisance (due the bad way it stinks, among other reasons).
Providing with observations of this exotic species -which could be mistaken for other native insects- is the objective of a campaign which is open to citizen science through the platform Natusfera, an initiative launched by the University of Barcelona, the Institute of Agrifood Research and Technology (IRTA) and the Department of Agriculture of the Catalan Government.
The new approach of the accessible citizen science through Natusfera “is a tool that will help us identify the presence of this species and know more about its biology, and which will contribute to provide control measures to stop the expansion of this exotic insect in the environment where it is already living in our territory”, notes Marta Goula, lecturer from the Department of Evolutionary Biology, Ecology and Environmental Sciences of the Faculty of Biology, member of the Biodiversity Research Institute of the University of Barcelona (IRBio) and one of the launchers of this initiative.
Image: Adrià Miralles