The southern green stink bug, Nezara viridula (L.), has several genetically determined types, three being the most common in Brazil: G (f. smaragdula - green body), O (f. torquata - green body with lateral and median lobes of the head and anterior margin of the pronotum yellow), and Y (f. aurantiaca - gold or orange body). Nymphal and adult performance of these types was studied at 15ºC/10hL, 22ºC/12hL, and 29ºC/14hL. Mean total nymph mortality in all types at 15ºC/10hL was high (ca. 80%), especially for type G (98%); at 22ºC/12hL, the greatest mortality (55%) occurred in type G, and at 29ºC/14hL in type Y (65%). In general, at combinations of higher temperatures and longer photoperiods, nymphs developed faster. Adult longevity of type G decreased from ca. 88 days at 15ºC/10hL to ca. 57 days at 22ºC/12hL and 29ºC/14hL; for type O, adult longevity varied from ca. 81 days at 22ºC/12hL to ca. 55 days at 29ºC/14hL; type Y showed the shortest lifespan, in particular at the extremes of temperatures/photoperiods (< 20 days). Types G and Y did not reproduce at 15ºC/10hL, and type Y did not reproduce at 29ºC/14hL; type O reproduced at all three abiotic conditions. These results demonstrate that type O is the most adapted to the cooler temperature and shorter photoperiod, which explains its greater abundance in south Brazil.
Biology; genetical type; southern green stink bug
