Paddy stemborer: Scirpophaga incertulas

Symptom of damage:

• Presence of brown coloured egg mass near leaf tip
• Caterpillar bore into central shoot of paddy seedling and tiller, causes drying of the central shoot known as “dead heart”
• Grown up plant whole panicle becomes dried “white ear”
• Plants could be easily pulled by hand

Identification of insect pest:

• Egg: are creamy white, flattened, oval and scale like and laid in mass and covered with buff coloured hairs
• Larva: pale yellow with dark brown head
• Pupa: White silken cocoon are found inside the stem
• Adult:

Female moth: bright yellowish brown fore wings with a black spot possess a tuft of yellow hairs Male moth : Smaller with pale yellow forewings without black spot

Management:

ETL: 25% Dead heart symptoms ATL (Action Threshold Level): 2 egg masses/m2

• At ATL release egg parasitoid, Trichogramma japonicum for the management of the rice yellow stem borer
• Spraying Neem seed kernel extract controls stem borer
• Clip the seedling tips before transplanting to eliminate egg masses and collect and destroy the egg masses in main field