THE RICE BROWN PLANTHOPPER: Feeding Physiology and Host Plant Interactions

The genetic basis of host plant adaptation in the brown planthopper (Nilaparvata lugens)

“…Data on the inheritance of host preference will be presented elsewhere but the sympatric host shift hypothesis might be most strongly supported if host preference and host-associated performance have a common genetic basis. This is possible in an insect like brown planthopper where feeding performance is apparently strongly influenced by chemical signals received from the plant that stimulate or deter feeding (Sōgawa, 1982). The same signals may stimulate or deter oviposition, or females may simply lay eggs on plants on which they choose to feed.…”

Genetic mapping of the rice resistance-breaking gene of the brown planthopper Nilaparvata lugens

“…The pH determination was based on the BPH feeding behaviour on resistant rice on which the virulent individuals intake phloem sap and excrete a large volume of alkaline honeydew ( pH . 8), whereas avirulent individuals excrete a small volume or no volume of neutral honeydew because they can feed only on xylem sap [6]. To analyse the segregation of the virulence in F 2 generations, each adult female was classified as avirulent or virulent based on the quantity of honeydew with the threshold of 10 mg/48 h or 20 mg/48 h, or pH of the honeydew with the threshold of 7.2.…”

Why farmers continue to use pesticides despite environmental, health and sustainability costs

“…Excellent examples are the brown planthopper (Nilaparvata Ingens) and the rice gall midge (Orseolia oryzae) pests. There are many more species that have proliferated with the destruction of natural predators which earlier were not serious (Sogawa, 1982;Kenmore et al 1984;Litsinger, 1989, p.235;Way and Bowling, 1991;Heong, 1991;Rola and Pingali, 1993, p. 15-19). Kenmore (1980) reported that nearly every epidemic of brown planthoppers (BPH) in the tropics has been associated with prior use of insecticides.…”