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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Stoneville, Mississippi » Southern Insect Management Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #338358
Research Project: Integrated Insect Pest and Resistance Management on Corn, Cotton, Sorghum, Soybean, and Sweet Potato

Location: Southern Insect Management Research

Title: Higher fertilizer inputs increase fitness traits of brown planthopper in rice

Author
item RASHID, MM - Bangladesh Rice Research Institute
item AHMED, N - Bangladesh Rice Research Institute
item JAHAN, M - Bangladesh Rice Research Institute
item ISLAM, KS - Bangladesh Rice Research Institute
item NANSEN, C - Bangladesh Rice Research Institute
item Willers, Jeffrey
item ALI, MP - Bangladesh Rice Research Institute

Submitted to: Scientific Reports
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 5/9/2017
Publication Date: 7/5/2017
Citation: Rashid, M., Ahmed, N., Jahan, M., Islam, K., Nansen, C., Willers, J.L., Ali, M. 2017. Higher fertilizer inputs increase fitness traits of brown planthopper in rice. Scientific Reports. 7:4719. doi:10.1038/s41598-017-05023-7.

Interpretive Summary: Results from this study support some causal reasons for the observed and wide spread outbreaks of BPH in rice fields across Asia. The manipulation of fertilizer inputs, especially of nitrogen regimes, may help to optimize agricultural practices by promoting negative effects on herbivorous insects. This could actually be achieved with little damage to plants and negligible crop yield87-89. Future work should aim at quantifying the trade-off between the negative impact on herbivorous pests and plant yield using sub-optimal, optimal, excessive and limited fertilizer input, as well as including effects of fertilizers on arthropods from the higher trophic level (i.e. natural enemies). Without including the effects of fertilizers on insect fitness parameters, the design of more innovative technologies that are mostly self-operating with minimal inputs for the control of crop pests is difficult.

Technical Abstract: ice (Oryza sativa L.) is the primary staple food source for more than half of the world's population. In many developing countries, increased use of fertilizers is a response to increase demand for rice. In this study, we investigated the effects of three principal fertilizer components (nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium) on the development of potted rice plants and their effects on fitness traits of the brown planthopper (BPH) [Nilaparvata lugens (Stål) (Homoptera: Delphacidae)], which is a major pest on rice in Bangladesh and elsewhere. Compared to low fertilizer inputs, high fertilizer treatments induced plant growth but also favored BPH development. The BPH had higher survival, developed faster, and the intrinsicrate of natural increase (rm) was higher on well-fertilized than under-fertilized plants. Among the fertilizer inputs, nitrogen had the strongest effect on the fitness traits of BPH. Furthermore, both the ‘‘Plant vigor hypothesis’’ and the ‘‘Plant stress hypothesis’’ were supported by the results, but the former hypothesis more so than the latter one. These hypotheses suggest that the most suitable/attractive hosts for insect herbivores are the most vigorous plants. Our findings emphasize that an exclusive focus on yield increases through only enhanced crop fertilization may have unforeseen, indirect, effects on crop susceptibility to pests, such as BPH.