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ARS Home » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #113943
Title: ARTIFICIAL PINK BOLLWORM EGG INFESTATIONS AND LARVAL SURVIVAL IN NUCOTN 33B AND DELTAPINE COTTON CULTIVARS IN ARIZONA

Author
item Henneberry, Thomas
item Jech, Lynn
item De La Torre, Theresa
item Brown, Sarah
item HILL, JENNIFER - PREVIOUS USDA-ARS EMP.

Submitted to: National Cotton Council Beltwide Cotton Conference
Publication Type: Proceedings
Publication Acceptance Date: 5/1/2000
Publication Date: 6/1/2000
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: NuCOTN 33b (Bt cotton) (Monsanto Company, St Louis, MO) carrying the gene for the Bacillus thuringiensis var. kurstaki (Berliner) insect toxic protein is a new advance in technology for pink bollworm (PBW), Pectinophora gossypiella (Saunders), control. To investigate grower concern for reduced efficacy in late-season because of breakdown or non- expression of the toxic protein, we compared the susceptibility of Bt and Deltapine 5415 (Monsanto Company, St Louis, MO) (non-Bt) cotton bolls to PBW at periodic intervals during the first and second cotton fruiting cycles. We placed >200 PBW eggs per boll on the inside surface of a bract of susceptible immature cotton bolls. The artificially infested bolls were later harvested and examined for evidence of PBW infestation. High percentages of both Bt and non-Bt cotton bolls had numerous larval entrance holes in the carpel walls of the bolls. Less than 1% of the Bt cotton bolls and over 70% of the non-Bt cotton bolls were found with living PBW larvae. Bt cotton bolls of the late-season second fruiting cycle were as resistant to PBW infestation as Bt cotton bolls of the first fruiting cycle.