The first field release in Brazil of the Thaumastocoris peregrinus egg parasitoid Cleruchoides noackae was made in Minas Gerais state in Brazil on August 6. Click here for more information on the release (in Portuguese) at the IPEF website. (A Google Translate version of this information in English can be found here). This is now the second release of C. noackae outside of Australia, following the release by Chile in June 2010. (English translation here)
Congratulations to Prof Carlos Wilcken and his team at IPEF and UNESP and Dr Luiz Alexandre Nogueira de Sá and his team at the EMBRAPA Costa Lima Quarantine Laboratory for this great achievement. This is the result of close collaboration over a number of years between Australia and Brazil, illustrating the benefits of a coordinated response to this key eucalypt plantation pest.
Updates will be posted on establishment and impact of C. noackae on T. peregrinus in Brazil as they come to hand.