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A ROVE BEETLE, OCYPUS OLENS,1 WITH POTENTIAL FOR BIOLOGICAL CONTROL OF THE BROWN GARDEN SNAIL, HELIX ASPERSA,2 IN CALIFORNIA, INCLUDING A KEY TO THE NEARCTIC SPECIES OF OCYPUS

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  31 May 2012

R. E. Orth ,
Ian Moore ,
T. W. Fisher  and
E. F. Legner
R. E. Orth
Affiliation:
Division of Biological Control, Citrus Research Center and Agricultural Experiment Station, University of California, Riverside
Ian Moore
Affiliation:
Division of Biological Control, Citrus Research Center and Agricultural Experiment Station, University of California, Riverside
T. W. Fisher
Affiliation:
Division of Biological Control, Citrus Research Center and Agricultural Experiment Station, University of California, Riverside
E. F. Legner
Affiliation:
Division of Biological Control, Citrus Research Center and Agricultural Experiment Station, University of California, Riverside
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Abstract

A female rove beetle (Ocypus olens Müller) in the laboratory consumed 20 small-sized brown garden snails (Helix aspersa Müller) in 22 days, eating almost its weight in snail bodies daily. H. aspersa is a serious agricultural and residential plant pest. Field observations from an area where O. olens was well established had a smaller snail population than similar areas lacking the beetle. O. olens appears to be a promising candidate species for biological control of H. aspersa. Mass production of O. olens has not yet been attempted. A tabular key to the nearctic species of Ocypus is presented. In North America its distribution is limited to California for which a map is included.

Type
Articles
Information
The Canadian Entomologist , Volume 107 , Issue 10 , October 1975 , pp. 1111 - 1116
Copyright
Copyright © Entomological Society of Canada 1975

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References

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