Cultural control of giant sugarcane borer, Telchin licus (Lepidoptera: Castniidae), by soil mounding to impede adult emergence
Abstract
The giant sugarcane borer, Telchin licus (Drury) (Lepidoptera: Castniidae), also known as the banana stem borer, is an economically important pest of sugarcane in eastern Colombia. The presence of larval and pupal stages within stalks makes biological control of this pest difficult, and growers often resort to insecticide applications. Hilling up the soil around the base of plants, or soil mounding, is a cultural practice sometimes used to improve rooting in sugarcane. Because mature larvae cut holes in stalks close to ground level through which they can emerge as an adult, we hypothesized that soil mounding would impede adult emergence, and thus contribute to population reduction. Two experiments were conducted in fields with significant infestations of this pest in Puerto López, Meta, Colombia, during the seasons of adult emergence in this region (Apr–May and Oct–Nov). Manual mounding of soil to a height of 20 cm was tested in the first trial, and mechanized mounding of soil in the second, which also compared 2 mounding heights (10 and 20 cm). In both cases, 2 m row transects of plants were caged to collect emergent adults. Adult emergence was reduced up to 65% in all mounding treatments, whether manual or mechanical, and regardless of mounding height, demonstrating that this cultural practice could be a useful tactic for inclusion in an integrated management program for this pest. However, as with any other cultural practice in pest management, region-wide implementation likely would be required to impact local population densities, and efficacy will depend further on low levels of moth immigration from alternative host plants.
Resumen
El barrenador gigante de la caña de azúcar Telchin licus (Drury) (Lepidoptera: Castniidae), también conocido como el gusano tornillo del plátano, es una plaga de importancia económica de la caña de azúcar en el este de Colombia. Sus hábitos de barrenador dificultan el control haciendo recurrente la aplicación de insecticidas. El aporque es una práctica usada para mejorar el enraizamiento al amontonar suelo en la base de la planta. Debido a que las larvas hacen agujeros en los tallos cerca del nivel del suelo por donde emergen los adultos, planteamos la hipótesis de que el aporque impide la emergencia de los adultos, contribuyendo a la reducción de la población. Se realizaron dos experimentos en campos con altas infestaciones en Puerto López, Meta, durante las temporadas de emergencia de adultos en esta región (abril–mayo y octubre–noviembre). En el primer ensayo se probó el aporque manual a una altura de 20 cm, y en el segundo el aporque mecanizado, que comparó dos alturas del suelo (10 y 20 cm). En ambos casos se enjaularon transectos de plantas de 2 m en hileras para recolectar adultos emergentes. La emergencia de adultos se redujo en aproximadamente un 65% en todos los tratamientos de aporque, manuales o mecánicos, e independientemente de la altura dejada por la labor, demostrando que esta práctica cultural es una táctica útil para su inclusión en un programa de manejo integrado de la plaga. Sin embargo, como en el caso de cualquier otra práctica cultural en el manejo de plagas, se requeriría una implementación regional para afectar las densidades de población local, siendo que su eficacia también dependería de una baja migración desde hospederos alternos.
Key Words: banana stem borer; Saccharum officinarum; soil insect pest; cultural control
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