The soybean stem borer (Dectes texanus texanus) has emerged as a major pest of soybeans in several Kansas counties. This small cerambycid lays its eggs in the petioles of soybean leaves. The larvae tunnel down to the base of the plants eventually girdling the stem just above the soil line which leads to lodging as the plants mature and are exposed to weathering and wind. Lodging makes harvest extremely difficult and serious yield losses can occur. Starting in the summer of 1999 and continuing through the fall of 2001, selected soybean fields in Republic County were sampled to study the seasonal occurrence of this pest. Adults could be collected for at least ten weeks within first-year soybean fields. Knowledge of adult activity should prove useful in assessing the feasibility of attempting control with insecticides. Visible plant damage first became obvious when individual leaves began dying six weeks after sampling began as a consequence of larvae tunneling within infested petioles.
Species 1: Coleoptera Cerambycidae Dectes texanus (soybean stem borer)
Keywords: Soybeans, Beetles
The ESA 2001 Annual Meeting - 2001: An Entomological Odyssey of ESA