The rice stink bug (Oebalus pugnax) is an important pest of rice. Rice stink bugs can damage rice by piercing the flower, resulting in a sterile flower (non-filled seed) or by feeding on the developing seed, reducing the quality of the grains (pecky rice). Recent work has shown that graminaceous weeds near rice can serve as a source of stink bug infestation. A field experiment was conducted in 2002 to investigate weed density and its relationship to rice stink bug populations and damage caused by stink bugs. Varying rates of herbicides were used to achieve a range of weed densities. Insecticide was used to exclude stink bugs from half of the plots. Seed weight, percent filled seed, and percent of pecky rice were measured. Data show that as weed density increased there was an increase in number of stink bugs and a reduction in percent of filled seeds.
Species 1: Heteroptera Pentatomidae Oebalus pugnax (rice stink bug)
Keywords: insect-weed interactions, rice
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