Thrips Damage to Cotton

Thrips (Thysanoptera: Thripidae) mitigation in seedling cotton using strip tillage and winter cover crops

“…Early work in Texas showed that thrips moved from weedy fields to cotton and then increased at a rapid rate 3. Dunnam and Clark4 showed that thin stands were more susceptible to damage from thrips, leading to delayed crop maturity. These tiny pests become active in the spring, and winged adults disperse from wild hosts, such as Brassica kaber Wheeler, in search of suitable host plants, such as wheat and cotton 5.…”

Biology, Crop Injury, and Management of Thrips (Thysanoptera: Thripidae) Infesting Cotton Seedlings in the United States

“…The impact on these plant growth parameters results in boll development and maturation periods extending into the latter part of the growing season, thus delaying crop maturity and timely harvest. Significant delays in maturity because of thrips injury have been observed by many researchers (Gaines 1934, Watts 1937b, Dunham and Clark 1937, Carter et al 1989, Bourland et al 1992, Herbert 1998, Van Duyn et al 1998, Van Tol and Lentz 1999, Lentz and Van Tol 2000. Heavy infestations of thrips have delayed crop maturity to harvest Ն two weeks (Gaines 1934, Dunham and Clark 1937, Watts 1937b, Carter et al 1989, Bourland et al 1992.…”

“…Significant delays in maturity because of thrips injury have been observed by many researchers (Gaines 1934, Watts 1937b, Dunham and Clark 1937, Carter et al 1989, Bourland et al 1992, Herbert 1998, Van Duyn et al 1998, Van Tol and Lentz 1999, Lentz and Van Tol 2000. Heavy infestations of thrips have delayed crop maturity to harvest Ն two weeks (Gaines 1934, Dunham and Clark 1937, Watts 1937b, Carter et al 1989, Bourland et al 1992. However, other studies have shown that thrips infestations had no effect on crop maturity (Newsom et al 1953, Leigh 1963, Harp and Turner 1976, Parker and Huffman 1985, Lentz and Austin 1994.…”

“…Some researchers have observed decreases in yield from thrips or increases in yield when seedling thrips were controlled (Watts 1937b, Race 1961, Davis and Cowan 1972, Leser 1985, Carter et al 1989, Almand 1995, Herbert 1998, Van Tol and Lentz 1999, Lentz and Van Tol 2000, while others have not (Newsom et al 1953, Watson 1965, Beckham 1970, Harp and Turner 1976, Terry and Barstow 1985, Ratchford et al 1987, Lentz and Austin 1994, Roberts 1994. Delayed crop maturity because of thrips injury has also been variable (Gaines 1934, Watts 1937b, Dunham and Clark 1937, Newsom et al 1953, Leigh 1963, Harp and Turner 1976, Parker and Huffman 1985, Carter et al 1989, Bourland et al 1992, Lentz and Austin 1994, Herbert 1998, Van Duyn et al 1998, Van Tol and Lentz 1999, Lentz and Van Tol 2000. In the United States, thrips infesting cotton seedlings have been ranked in importance from first to seventh with regard to yield loss during 1979 -2009, with yield loss estimates ranging from 0.12% to 0.88% (Hamer 1980(Hamer , 1981(Hamer , 1982Head 1984Head , 1985Head , 1989Head , 1990…”

Cotton thrips infestation predictor: a practical tool for predicting tobacco thrips (Frankliniella fusca) infestation of cotton seedlings in the south‐eastern United States

“…The tobacco thrips, Frankliniella fusca (Hinds), is considered to be the most important early season insect problem affecting cotton in the south-eastern United States, where insecticides specifically targeting thrips are used on most cotton plantings. [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8] Neonicotinoid (imidacloprid or thiamethoxam) seed treatments, supplemented with foliar-applied insecticides to control heavy infestations, are currently the principal method for managing tobacco thrips. The widespread occurrence of neonicotinoid resistance in tobacco thrips throughout the south-eastern cotton production region has led to increased reliance on supplemental foliar and in-furrow applications of systemic insecticide applications for thrips control.…”