The Predatory Bug Amphiareus obscuriceps (Poppius, 1909) (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Anthocoridae) in the Republic of Moldova

Amphiareus obscuriceps (Poppius, 1909) was found in trap belts installed on plum trees in September 2020 in the research and production orchard of the Institute of Genetics, Physiology, and Plant Protection (Chisinau, Republic of Moldova). Some morphological particularities of the structure of the imago of this invasive bug, originating from the East Palearctic region of Eurasia, are presented. The natural expansion of range of A. obscuricesps in the Republic of Moldova is the most likely route of its spread. A laboratory colony of bugs was formed, and data on some biological features of A. obscuriceps were obtained. It has been shown that A. obscuriceps feeds on eggs of the bean weevil Acanthoscelides obtectus. The duration of development of bugs from the second instar nymph to the adult on A. obtectus eggs was 11.8 ± 0.2 days. When imagoes fed on A. obtectus eggs, 78% of A. obscuriceps pairs were fertile, and the life span of imagoes was 98 ± 2.8 days. In laboratory conditions, imagoes can feed on Galleria mellonella eggs. The voracity of a pair of bugs on G. mellonella eggs is 5.1 ± 1.0 eggs/day, 67% of A. obscuriceps pairs gave birth to offspring, and the life span of adults was 93 ± 5.0 days. The data obtained allow us to consider A. obscuriceps as promising entomophages. It is proposed to continue studying the biological features of A. obscuriceps to assess the impact of this alien species of predatory bugs on the native beneficial insect fauna, as well as to evaluate the prospects for mass breeding of A. obscuriceps for pest control in agrocenoses.