Pests of crops and stored grain and their management - AET-102 (2+1)

Insects pests in groundnut, sunflower and safflower and their management

Dr. Seema Tripathy

Assistant Prof, Dept. of Entomology, FOAG
SRI SRI UNIVERSITY, CUTTACK, ODISHA
 PEST OF GROUNDNUT

Red hairy caterpillar Amsacta albistriga Arctiidae Lepidoptera

Leaf miner Aproaerema modicella Gelechiidae Lepidoptera
Aphids Aphis craccivora Aphididae Hemiptera
Leaf hopper/jassids Empoasca kerri Cicadellidae Hemiptera
Thrips Scirtothrips dorsalis Thripidae Thysanoptera
Tobacco caterpillar Spodoptera litura Noctuidae Lepidoptera
Gram pod borer Helicoverpa armigera Noctuidae Lepidoptera
Termites Odontotermes sp. Termitidae Isoptera
White grub Holotrichia consanguinea Melalonthidae Coleoptera
 Red hairy caterpillar: Amsacta albistriga (Arctiidae: Lepidoptera)
Bionomics
• Adults: forewings are white with brownish streaks all over and yellowish streaks
along the anterior margin and hind wings white with black markings. A yellow
band is found on the head. On receipt of heavy rains it emerge out from the soil in
the evening hours and lays about 600-700 eggs eggs on the under surface of the
leaves.
• Egg period- 2-3 days.
• Larva: reddish brown hairs all over the body, larval period is 40-50 days.
• Pupa: larva pupates in earthern cells at a depth of 10-20 cm. They pupate mostly
along the field bunds and in moist shady areas under the trees in the field and
undergo pupal diapause till the next year.

Damage symptoms
• The larvae feed on the leaves gregariously by scraping the under
surface of tender leaflets leaving the upper epidermal layer intact in
early stages. Later they feed voraciously on the leaves and main stem
of plants. They march from field to field gregariously. Severely affected
field looks as though they are grazed by cattle.
Management
➢ Collect and destroy the pupae after summer ploughing on receipt of
showers.
➢ Grow cowpea or red gram as an intercrop to attract adult moths to lay
more eggs.
➢ Set up 3-4 light traps and bonfires immediately at the onset of rains at 4
weeks after sowing in the rainfed season to attract and kill the moths
➢ Collect and destroy egg masses
➢ Collect and destroy gregarious early instar larvae
➢ Trench digging: Dig out a trench around the field to avoid the migration of
caterpillars, trap larvae and kill them.
➢ Use nuclear polyhedrosis virus @ 250 LE/ha.
➢ ETL: 8 egg masses/100 meter
➢ Spray- Spinosad 160ml/ha
Flubendiamide
Chlorantraniliprole @700ml/ha
 Leaf miner: Aproaerema modicella (Gelechiidae: Lepidoptera)

Marks of identification:
• The eggs are light brown in colour and oval shape. The caterpillar is small in size and pale
greenish to greenish with dark brown head. The moth is very small, quite active, and
dark brown in colour.A small distinct white spot is seen on the forewings.
Life history:
• The female moth lays about 200 eggs singly on the leaves and shoots. The eggs hatch
after about 3 days. The larvae are full grown in 9-17 days and turn dirty green in colour.
The pupal period lasts about 4 days. Pupation takes place in the leaf folds. 2 to 3
generations are observed in a crop period.
Damage symptoms
• Young larvae initially mine into the leaflets, feed on the mesophyll and form small brown
blotches on the leaf
• Later stages larvae web the leaflets together and feed on them, remaining within the
folds
• Severely attacked field looks "burnt" from a distance
Management
1. Grow resistant cultivars like ICGV 86031, ICGS 156 (M 13), FDRS 10, ICG 57, 156, 541, 7016, 7404, 9883
2. Sow groundnut early and synchronously in rainy and rabi season (pest prefers rainfed crops) .
3. Intercrop groundnut with pearl millet @ 4:1 ratio.
4. Set up light traps between 8 and 11 PM at ground level.
5. Mulch the soil with straw within 10 days after germination wherever possible.
6. Avoid water stress in irrigated crop to avoid the pest infestation.
7. Maintain the fields and bunds free from weeds.
8. when the pest crosses ETL, Spray emamectin benzoate 150ml/ha or Spinosad 160ml/ha
 Tobacco caterpillar: Spodoptera litura (Noctuidae: Lepidoptera)

Damage symptoms

Neonate, green caterpillars feed on the leaves voraciously and present an appearance to the field as if
grazed by cattle. Since this pest is nocturnal in habit larvae hide under the plants, cracks and crevices
of soil and debris during the day time. Faecal pellets are seen on the leaves and on the ground which
is the indicator of the pest incidence.
Bionomics

• Adult moth is stout with wavy white markings on the brown forewings
and white hind wings with a brown patch along its margin. Eggs are laid in
groups and covered with hairs on the leaves. The egg period is 4-5 days.
Larva is stout, cylindrical, pale brownish with dark markings. The body
may have row of dark spots or transverse and longitudinal grey and
yellow bands. When fully grown, measures about 35-40 mm in length. The
larval period is 14-21 days. It pupates in earthen cells in soil for 15 days.
Life cycle is completed 30-40 days.

• ETL: 1-2 egg masses per meter

Management
• Follow summer ploughing to expose pupae to sunlight and bird.
• Grow castor as a border (or) intercrop in groundnut fields to serve as indicator (or)trap crop.
• Monitor the emergence of adult moths by setting up of light traps.
• Set up pheromone trap (Pherodin SL) to monitor, attract and kill the male moths @12 nos./ha
• Collect egg masses and destroy
• Collect the gregarious larvae and destroy
• Trench digging: Avoid migration of larvae by digging a trench 30 cm deep and 25 cm wide with perpendicular sides around
the infested fields.
• Poison baiting: Prepare a bait with following for 1 ha. Rice bran 12.5 kg, molasses or sugar 2.5 kg, spinosad @
2.5ml/kg(mix the ingredients to obtain a homogenous mixture sprinkle water gradually and bring the bait to a dough
consistency. Distribute the above bait on the soil, in and around the field in the evening hours immediately after
preparation).
• Apply NPV @ 250 LE/ha
• Apply Chlorantraniliprole 18.5% SC @60 ml/acre
Flubendiamide 20 WG 120 g/ac
Diflubenzuron 25 WP 160 g/ac
Gram pod borer: Helicoverpa armigera (Noctuidae: Lepidoptera)
same as in pulse crop
White grub : Holotrichia consanguinea (Melalonthidae: Coleoptera)
Bionomics
• The dark brown adult beetles reenter the soil to hide and lay eggs. Female lays 20 - 80 white, roundish eggs in clusters.
Egg period 9 - 11 days. Grubs are white and translucent. Pupates in soil and remain as pupae until the following year. The
adult beetles emerge with the first monsoon showers.
Nature of Damage:
• Wilting of plants in patches.
• Wilted plants do not have taproot and rootlets.
• The grubs feed on the root and rootlets.
• Adult beetles feed on the foliage and are capable of defoliating plants and even trees like neem, banyan. Feeding is
carried out during night
Management
1. Plough deep at the time of land preparation to expose grub and kill.
2. Adopt crop rotation with rice in irrigated endemic areas to bring down grub damage.
3. Ensure adequate irrigation to irrigated groundnut in endemic areas since the grub attacks roots under inadequate soil
moisture condition.
4. Set up light traps or bonfires to attract and kill the adults on receipt of summer showers.
5. Incorporate carbofuran @ 33.0 kg/ha or phorate @ 25.0 kg/ha in soil before sowing.
6. Seed treatment with chlorpyriphos 20EC @ 6.5-12.0 ml/kg or imidacloprid 17.8SL @ 2.0 ml/kg seed
 Aphids - Aphis craccivora (Aphididae: Hemiptera)
Marks of Identification:
• Reddish to dark brown coloured with two tube like structures called
"Cornicles" at the anal end of the abdomen.
Nature of damage:
• Both nymphs and adults suck the sap from the leaflets and tender shoots
• Distortion of shoots and stunting of plants.
• Honeydew secreted by nymphs and adults deposited on leaves cause
sooty mould.
• Vector for peanut stripe virus and groundnut rosette virus.
Management:
• Conserve natural enemies like coccinellids, praying mantids, chrysopids
and spiders by intercropping with cowpea.
• Release of Chrysoperla grubs @ 1000 Nos. / ac.
• Use of sticky trap to know the initial population of aphid.
• Spray NSKE 5 % or Azadirachtin @ 400 ml/ac
• Spray imidacloprid 17.8 SL @ 50 ml/ac
 Leaf hopper: Empoasca kerri (Cicadellidae: Hemiptera)
• Symptoms of damage Control measure:
• Nymphs and adults suck the sap from young leaves. • Timely sowing of the crop can reduce
• Chlorotic patches at leaf tips, in a typical 'V' shape. the pest infestation.
•Intercrop lab lab with groundnut @1:4
• Under severe infestation, leaf margins become necrotic, scorched
known as hopper burn.
ratio.
•Irrigate frequently to avoid prolonged
• Identification of the pest mid season drought to prevent
• Egg: Female inserts eggs into leaf veins on the underside. Egg infestation.
period-7 days •Spray Imidacloprid 17.8 SL @ 40-50
• Nymph: Pale greenish and walk diagonally. Nymphal period: 21 ml/ac
days(5 moults)
• Adult: Green coloured, elongated and wedge shaped. Total life
cycle 4 weeks
 Thrips: Scirtothrips dorsalis (Thripidae: Thysanoptera)
Symptoms of damage
• Nymphs and adults lacerate the leaf and suck the oozing sap resulted in white patches
on lower surface of the leaves.
• In severe infestations, leaves become bronzed.
• transmits peanut bud necrosis virus
Identification of the pest
• Nymphs: Yellow coloured. 7-10 days
• Adults: 1 month duration, Black coloured with fringed wings. lay 40-50 eggs inside the
tissues of leaves and shoot
• Egg: 5 days
Management
• Intercrop lab lab with groundnut 1:4 ratio
• Spray the crop with emamectin benzoate 150ml/ha or Spinosad 160ml/ha or
imidacloprid
Insect pests of Sunflower and its
management
 Major pests

1 Leaf hopper/ jassids Amrasca biguttula biguttula Cicadellidae Hemiptera

2 Capitulum borer Helicoverpa armigera Noctuidae Lepidoptera

3 Tobacco caterpillar Spodoptera litura Noctuidae Lepidoptera

4 Bihar hairy caterpillar Spilosoma obliqua Arctiidae Lepidoptera

5 Semi looper Trichoplusia ni Noctuidae Lepidoptera

6 Cutworms Agrotis ipsilon Noctuidae Lepidoptera

Vertebrate pest: birds: Parakeet: Psittacula krameri

 Leaf hopper (jassids): Amrasca biguttula biguttula
Symptoms of damage:
•Both nymphs and adults suck the sap from the under surface of leaves.
•Leaves become crinkled and cup shaped, growth gets stunted, brownish red colour develops on the edges of leaves and the
condition is known as “hopper burn”.
Identification of the pest:
•Nymphs: Pale greenish almost translucent and walk diagonally, duration-7days
•Adults: Greenish yellow, wedge shaped with a pair of black spots on vertex and a black spot on each of the forewings
•Egg: laid in vein underside of leaf-4-11days hatching time
Management:
➢ Early sowing
➢ Setup light trap to monitor the broods of leaf hopper and to attract and kill
➢ Spray NSKE 5%
➢ Release predators viz., Chrysopa carnea
➢ Treat seed with imidacloprid 2ml/kg seed- prevent attack up to 7 weeks
➢ Spray Imidacloprid or Thiamethoxam
 Capitulum borer – Helicoverpa armigera (Noctuidae: Lepidoptera)

Damage symptoms
•The larva feeds on the developing seeds and bore the head
•Fungal developed and head starts rotting
•The larva consumes leaf in early stage of growth and move towards the capitulum and tunnel the head

Management
• Grow inter crops like, green gram, black gram, groundnut, soybean
• Sow 3-4 lines of maize (or) jowar around the sunflower crop to monitor the moth
• Sow trap crops like marigold at 50 plants/acre
• Use of pheromone traps (4 traps/acre) for pest intensity identification as well as to trap the male moths
• Setting of light traps (1 light trap/5 acre) to know the range of pest incidence as well as to kill moth population
• Release predators like coccinellids, Chrysoperla carnea @1larva/ head
• Release parasitoides like Trichogramma spp.@ 20,000/acre,
• Spray HaNPV 250 LE + Bt @0.5kg/ha for effective control
Spray same insecticide recommended in pulse crop for pod borer
Tobacco caterpillar - Spodoptera litura (Noctuidae: Lepidoptera)
• Damage symptoms,
• The larvae feed on the tender leaves, shoots, bracts and petals
• Later, the larvae spread in the field causing defoliation
• The larvae also feeds on the developing seeds in capitulum
• bionomics, and management are the same as given under groundnut
 Bihar hairy caterpillar: Spilosoma obliqua

Symptoms of damage:
•Young larvae feed gregariously mostly on the
under surface of the leaves
•Caterpillars feed on leaves and in severe
infestation the whole crop is defoliated
•Drying up of infected leaves is the main
symptom

•Bionomics and management same as pulse

crop
Cutworms: Agrotis spp. (Noctuidae: Lepidoptera)
• The cutworms may be serious during March - April in fields where sunflower follow potato.
Caterpillars cut the seedlings at the ground level.
Management
• Seed treatment with cyantraniliprole
• Weed removal
• Higher seed rate
• Spray cyantraniliprole or chorantraniliprole
 Pest of Safflower

Major pest
1 Safflower caterpillar Perigea capensis Noctuidae Lepidoptera
2 Safflower bud Fly Acanthiophilus helianthi Tephritidae Diptera
3 Safflower aphid Uroleucon compositae Aphididae Hemiptera
 Capsule fly/ Safflower bud fly

Symptoms of damage:
•Newly hatched larvae feed on the soft parts of the capsules
•Affected buds show small bore holes
•The infested buds rotten with a foul smelling ooze coming out of the apices
Identification of the pest:
•Larva: Maggot is dirty white in colour
•Adult: Flies are ash coloured with light brown legs.
Management:
Remove and destroy the infested buds early
Conserve larval parasitoids and predator Chrysopa virgestes (Chrysopidae)
•Application of Thiamethoxam.
 Safflower aphid: Uroleucon carthami
Symptoms of damage:
•Curling and yellowing of tender leaves
•Secrete honey dew like secretion on upper surface of the
leaves and plant parts forming a black sooty mold which
hinders photosynthetic activity resulting in stunted growth
•Finally the plants dry up

Identification of the pest:

•Nymphs: Reddish brown
•Adults: Large sized, black with pear-shaped body and
conspicuous cornicle

Management:
•Avoid late sowing
•Avoid excess use of nitrogen
•Maintain 2 or 3 rows of Maize and Sorghum around the fields
•Release of Chrysoperla eggs/grubs @ 1-2/plant
•Conserve Aphelinus sp
•Spray Thiamethoxam/imidacloprid/acetamiprid