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ARS Home » Midwest Area » Columbia, Missouri » Plant Genetics Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #412915
Research Project: Adaptation of Grain Crops to Varying Environments Including Climates, Stressors, and Human Uses

Location: Plant Genetics Research

Title: Oebalus pugnax (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) resistance to lambda-cyahlothrin in Texas and efficacy of 2 alternative insecticides in grain sorghum

Author
item GRAY, DANIELLE - Texas A&M University
item BILES, STEPHEN - Texas A&M Agrilife
item BERNAOLA, LINA - Texas A&M Agrilife
item MAYS, D.TYLER - Texas A&M Agrilife
item WALKER, WADE - Louisiana State University
item TOWLES, TYLER - Mississippi State University
item KERNS, DAVID - Texas A&M Agrilife
item Ludwick, Dalton

Submitted to: Journal of Economic Entomology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 6/26/2024
Publication Date: 7/11/2024
Citation: Gray, D.D., Biles, S., Bernaola, L., Mays, D., Walker, W., Towles, T., Kerns, D., Ludwick, D.C. 2024. Oebalus pugnax (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) resistance to lambda-cyahlothrin in Texas and efficacy of 2 alternative insecticides in grain sorghum. Journal of Economic Entomology. 117(5):2060-2069. https://doi.org/10.1093/jee/toae155.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/jee/toae155

Interpretive Summary: Rice stink bug is a major pest of sorghum, particularly in the Coastal Bend of Texas., that impacts hundreds of thousands of acres. This pest is often controlled with insecticide applications belonging to a single ingredient, lambda-cyhalothrin. To determine whether lambda-cyhalothrin resistance is widespread and severe, a study was conducted to test rice stink bugs from across Texas and Louisiana. Results indicated that lambda-cyhalothrin resistance was prevalent across much of the tested area and rendered ineffective as a management tool. Additional tests revealed other insecticides could be used in place of lambda-cyahlothrin thereby creating additional options for impacted stakeholders.

Technical Abstract: Along the Coastal Bend of Texas, the rice stink bug, Oebalus pugnax (F.), is a major pest of grain sorghum and rice that is primarily managed by insecticide applications. Reports of rice stink bug resistance to pyrethroids in Texas first surfaced in 2015 and continued to spread. To determine the status of pyrethroid resistance, rice stink bug populations across Texas and Louisiana were evaluated from 2021–2023. Mortality was assessed through glass vial exposures to eight concentrations (0, 0.03, 0.1, 0.3, 1, 3, 10, and 30 µg/vial) of a pyrethroid, lambda-cyhalothrin. The concentration of lambda-cyhalothrin required to kill 50% (LC50) of each population was estimated by probit analysis. Furthermore, the efficacy of insecticides, including lambda-cyhalothrin, dimethoate, and dinotefuran were evaluated in field experiments conducted in 2021. Our results indicated that 14 of the 21 rice stink bug populations sampled were resistant to lambda-cyhalothrin, with LC50 values ranging from 42–1,600 times higher than a susceptible population. In the field trial, lambda-cyhalothrin did not control rice stink bugs. Dinotefuran provided excellent control of nymphs, but dimethoate provided greater control of adult rice stink bugs. To our knowledge, this is the first study to thoroughly evaluate the extent or geographic range of pyrethroid resistance in Texas for rice stink bugs.