Expansion of western bean cutworm as an economic pest in the Corn Belt, and Cry1F as a trait-delivered solution for management

The western bean cutworm (WBCW), Striacosta albicosta (Smith), has shown significant eastward expansion of host range in recent years; becoming a common pest in seed and commercial corn production systems across the Corn Belt. Proposed drivers for the increased pest status include cultural and technical shifts within the agricultural landscape and behavioral and genetic changes within pest populations. Many corn growers and dealers have classified all ear-feeding larvae as “ear worms”, and may be unaware of species-specific differences in spectrum of control for both agrichemical and transgenic management strategies.

Trait-delivered solutions for control of above-ground lepidopteran pests are largely limited to native resistance traits and utilization of Bt proteins expressed within tissues. Specific Bt proteins have been observed to vary widely with regard to activity against target pests. Among current Bt proteins registered in corn genetics, Cry1F has been found to deliver the most effective control of WBCW. As this insect pest continues to gain attention in corn growing regions of the U.S., it will be critical for producers utilizing trait-delivered insect control to choose seed products that contain Cry1F proteins. Cry1F is currently available in Herculex® I and Herculex® XTRA seed products and is being evaluated in SmartStaxÔ stacked-trait product concepts.

Herculex® is a registered trademark of Dow AgroSciences LLC. SmartStaxÔ is a trademark of Monsanto Technology, LLC.