The Brown Marmorated Stink Bug (Halyomorpha halys) is an invasive insect that has become a serious concern for homeowners and agricultural producers across North America and Europe. This pest causes significant crop damage. A key part of its lifecycle involves seeking sheltered locations, such as inside homes, to survive the cold season. Understanding how long this pest can survive without food is important for developing effective pest management strategies. The duration of starvation tolerance depends heavily on the insect’s metabolic state, which changes dramatically with the season and temperature.
Baseline Survival Times for Active Stink Bugs
A stink bug that is metabolically active, such as one found walking around a home or one that has been warmed up indoors, has a relatively short window of survival without a food source. Under typical room temperatures, the insect’s high metabolic rate quickly depletes its stored energy reserves. The primary energy sources utilized during this period are reserves of glycogen and stored fat.
For an active adult Brown Marmorated Stink Bug, starvation can result in death within approximately 10 to 20 days. The exact duration depends on the bug’s initial fat reserves and the ambient temperature, as higher temperatures accelerate metabolic consumption. These reserves are finite, and once they are exhausted, the bug quickly succumbs to starvation. Prolonged survival is impossible when feeding is absent.
How Diapause Alters Starvation Duration
The Brown Marmorated Stink Bug possesses a survival mechanism called diapause, which profoundly alters its starvation tolerance. Diapause is triggered by environmental cues, primarily shortening day length and cooling temperatures in the autumn. This physiological shift is a pre-programmed biological preparation for overwintering, not simply a reaction to cold.
When the insect enters diapause, its entire metabolic rate undergoes deep suppression. The heart rate slows, oxygen consumption is drastically reduced, and reproductive activity ceases to conserve calories. By operating on a fraction of their normal energy expenditure, adult stink bugs can survive for extended periods, typically lasting several months, without consuming food. This metabolic suppression allows them to survive the entire winter, often for 90 to over 180 days.
The Impact of Temperature and Hydration
Environmental factors outside of the stable, low-temperature conditions of diapause can significantly accelerate the rate at which a stink bug dies from resource depletion. High temperatures (above 80°F or 27°C) dramatically increase the insect’s metabolic demands. This increased activity quickly burns through limited energy reserves, shortening the active starvation survival period to potentially less than ten days.
Lack of access to water is often a faster cause of death for the Brown Marmorated Stink Bug than the lack of food, even at moderate temperatures. Stink bugs continuously lose water through transpiration, and hot, dry conditions intensify this dehydration stress. When bugs exit their overwintering sites, their immediate physiological need is often hydration, indicating that water loss is a significant factor in their overall winter survival.