1,000 samurai wasps released in Giresun to combat brown marmorated stink bug
The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry released 1,000 samurai wasps in the Tirebolu district of Giresun as part of the fight against the brown marmorated stink bug pest. The ministry has reached an annual production capacity of 1.6 million samurai wasps since starting production in 2023.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry released 1,000 samurai wasps in the Tirebolu district of Giresun as part of biological control against the brown marmorated stink bug pest.
Speaking at an event in Karademir village, the ministry's Director General of Food and Control, Ersin Dilber, said that the fight against the brown marmorated stink bug is being carried out in cooperation with citizens.
Recalling that the pest was first detected in Turkey in 2017, Dilber said, "Within the framework of the action plan prepared by our ministry, we first started combating it in overwintering areas. In 2023, we began producing the samurai wasp, the natural enemy of the brown marmorated stink bug, for the first time in Turkey. That year, we released approximately 240,000 natural enemies into nature."
Noting that the production of samurai wasps increases every year, Dilber stated that the annual production capacity has reached approximately 1.6 million.
Emphasizing that neither the samurai wasp nor overwintering spraying alone is sufficient in the fight against the brown marmorated stink bug, Dilber said, "Using our ministry's resources, we have carried out a program to support the populations of natural insectivorous species such as pheasants and partridges."
After the speeches, Dilber and his entourage released the 1,000 samurai wasps, which were in glass tubes, into nature.