Release Methods forPerillus bioculatus(F.), a Predator of the Colorado Potato Beetle

Perillus bioculatus(F.) (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) provided excellent control of the Colorado potato beetle [Leptinotarsa decemlineata(Say)] in small plots when released in the nymph stage and nearly as good control when it was released in the egg stage where eggs were protected in screened cups. When unprotectedP. bioculatuseggs were scattered on the foliage, very few survived. Nine of 12 arthropod species, collected from the field and tested in petri dishes in the laboratory, ate more than 60% ofP. bioculatuseggs, nymphs, or both. Thus, whileP. bioculatusegg release shows promise as a method for controlling the Colorado potato beetle, effective methods for protecting eggs and newly hatched nymphs from predators need to be devised.