Certain Bioecological Characteristics of the Predatory Water Bug, Sphaerodema (Diplonychs) Nepoides (Fabricius 1803) (Heteroptera: Belostomatidae) and its Medical Importance

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Dept. Entomology & Pesticides, Fac. Agric., Cairo Univ., Egypt

2 College of Agriculture.. Department of Forestıry.. Kırkuk University.. Kırkuk. Iraq

3 Plant Protection Research Institute, Agricultural Research Center, 12619, Giza, Egypt.

Abstract

The bioecological research conducted on the belostomatid predatory water bug, Sphaerodema nepoides showed that its studied habitat included 31 taxa as 9 different species from 5 families in Heteroptera, 16 species from 2 families in Coleoptera, 3 species from 3 families in Diptera, 2 species from 2 families in Odonata, and one species from Baetidae in Ephemeroptera. The feeding habits, mating behaviors, and egg-laying processes were examined. The egg stage was characterized by an incubation duration of 11 ± 1.8 days. The average lengths of the immature feeding instars were recorded as 3.1, 3.6, 5.1, 6.2, and 15.9 days for the first, second, third, fourth, and fifth instar nymphs, respectively. The nymphal stage was completed within a range of 26 to 39 days, with a mean duration of 33.9 days. The lifespan of males and females was found to be 320 ± 30.2 days and 311 ± 28.8 days, respectively. Fecundity averaged 2120 ± 66.5 eggs per female, distributed across 21 ± 7.5 egg masses, which were laid on the backs of the males. In terms of disease vector potential, microscopic analysis of air-dried smears from the salivary glands of wild-caught adults and nymphs of S. nepoides, stained with carbol fuchsin, revealed no presence of the bacterium Mycobacterium ulcerans, the pathogen responsible for Buruli ulcer disease. This disease is not endemic to Egypt.

Keywords

Journal of Plant Protection and Pathology
Volume 16, Issue 8
August 2025
Pages 413-416

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