Field evaluation of soybean genotypes for resistance to the invasive kudzu bug (Megacopta cribraria)

Initially discovered in northeast Georgia in 2009, the invasive kudzu bug, Megacopta cribraria Fabricius, has spread rapidly throughout the southeastern U.S. in subsequent years.  While M. cribraria primarily feeds on kudzu (Pueraria spp.), it has also become a serious pest of soybeans, Glycine max Merrill, throughout its invasive range.  Currently, there are no commercially available soybean cultivars with known resistance to M. cribraria feeding or oviposition.  During the summer of 2013, 40 soybean breeding lines were field-tested for resistance to M. cribraria at the Sandhills Research Station in Jackson Springs, N.C.  Variation in soybean genotypes included traits for maturity group, pubescence type, leaf shape, drought tolerance, protein content, and insect and nematode resistance.  Number of M. cribraria egg masses, nymphs and adults were recorded throughout the growing season to identify potentially resistant soybean genotypes.  The fewest M. cribraria egg masses, nymphs and adults were found on narrow leaf genotypes when compared with other genotypes tested.  Information from this research will provide new insight for soybean breeders who wish to develop cultivars with resistance to M. cribraria.