Abstract
Three field trials were conducted to determine the effect of various levels of resistance of South African sorghum hybrids on follow-up generations of Busseola fusca Fuller (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) and Chilo partellus (Swinhoe) (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae). In one trial, plants were artificially infested with B. fusca larvae while the other trials were subjected to natural infestation of C. partellus. The number of damaged intemodes and moth exit holes per stem were used to calculate a relative survival index which estimates the survival of larvae to the adult stage. A moth production index was calculated to estimate the role of a hybrid in area-wide suppression of stemborer populations. In the B. fusca trial, resistant and susceptible experimental hybrids produced 40 000 and 113 000 moths per hectare respectively, compared to 80 000 and 83 000 moths per hectare produced by the commercial hybrids. Larval damage to whorl leaves, assessed on a 1 to 9 scale, indicated leaf-feeding resistance of commercial hybrids to B. fusca ranging from susceptible to intermediate. Yield losses suffered by the hybrids in the B. fusca trial were greater than that suffered by a susceptible experimental hybrid, indicating susceptibility of South African hybrids to B. fusca. The evaluation of sorghum varieties for their potential to reduce stemborer populations should indicate their usefulness in integrated pest management systems.
Résumé
Trois essais de terrain ont été menés pour déterminer l’effet de différents niveaux de résistance d’hybrides de sorgho Sud-Africains sur les populations de deuxième génération de Busseola fusca et Chilo partellus. Dans un essai, les plantes ont été infestées artificiellement avec des larves de B. fusca, tandis que les autres essais ont été soumis à l’infestation naturelle par C. partellus. On a utilisé les nombres d’entrenoeuds endommagés et de trous de sortie d’adultes par tige pour calculer un indice de survie relative estimant la survie des larves jusqu’au stade adulte. On a calculé un indice de production d’adultes pour estimer l’effet d’un hybride donné sur le niveau de population de la génération suivante de foreurs. Dans l’essai sur B. fusca, les hybrides résistant et sensible créés spécialement pour cet essai ont produit respectivement 40.000 et 113.000 adultes par hectare, comparé à 80.000 et 83.000 adultes par hectare produits par les hybrides commerciaux. Les dégâts foliaires causés au cornet par les larves, mesurés sur une échelle de 1 à 9, ont mis en évidence une résistance des hybrides commerciaux en termes de dégâts foliaires de B. fusca, allant du niveau de sensible â celui d’intermédiaire. Les pertes de rendement occasionnées aux hybrides commerciaux dans l’essai sur B. fusca ont été plus élevées que celles occasionnées à l’hybride sensible créé pour l’occasion, mettant ainsi en évidence la sensibilité des hybrides Sud-Africains à B. fusca. L’évaluation de variétés de sorgho pour leur potentiel de réduction des populations de foreurs des tiges devrait fournir des informations sur leur utilité dans des systèmes de lutte intégrée.
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Van den Berg, J., Van der Westhuizen, M.C. The Effect of Resistant Sorghum Hybrids in Suppression of Busseola fusca Fuller and Chilo partellus (Swinhoe) Populations. Int J Trop Insect Sci 18, 31–36 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1017/S1742758400007438
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S1742758400007438