Opennatur

It is a polyphagous and migratory specie, with significant fluctuations in their populations, with a maximum in September-October. This specie may have 3 generations per year.

Adults : have a wingspan of 3 to 4.5 cm. They are light brown but with multiple spots, with grey, black and white blurry drawings. The wing spots are narrow and poorly defined. The hindwings are whitish with the front edge brown

Eggs: are found in groups on the undersides of the leaves, covered with hairs or scales of the female abdomen. Usually are found at the bottom of the plant. The eggs are nearly spherical, measuring about 0.6 mm. in length and of yellow-white color.

Larvae: caterpillars vary from almost back to very light brown. In the last stage measure from 35 to 45 mm of length. They coil as spiral so as to be hidden in the ground or between fallen leaves.The thoracic legs (3 pairs) are black, while the false abdominal legs (5 pairs) are dark brown on the outer face but have light colors in its inner face. They have a dorsal midline flanked by two red – yellowish stripes and small yellow dots arranged in segments. They can be distinguished from other Spodoptera by four triangular patches on the body.

Pupae : develop on the ground, inside an earthy cocoon, where they often spend the winter. They are equipped with two hooks at the bottom part, shaped as 'U' and curved inward. Its size is 2 cm length.

DETECTION AND MONITORING:
Using a monitoring device consisting on “Unitrap green” traps with insecticide (DDVP vapone) and pheromones allows to detect the presence of adults in each plot. Next it’s recommended to contact the technical staff of Pest Protection Service on the area, who will evaluate the situation on the field and determine the actions to be taken in each case. Once the first captures occurs, its advisable to make a visual estimate by means of a direct sampling on the plants, paying attention to the leaves, among other parts of the plants.

• Place 3 to 4 Unitrap traps per hectare of crop or per monitored area. Place it over the crop for good ventilation, and put them up as the crop grows.
• Place the pheromone into the basket and the insecticide into the receptacle of the trap. Always use protection gloves.
• Traps are monitored 1 time per week, to collect and note down the number of insects captured and verify that traps are still in the correct position.
• Attractants must be renewed every 6 weeks.

To carry out the control of the pest, follow these instructions:

• Place 8 to 10 Unitrap Unitrap per hectare of crop, depending on the density of catches. Place them about 20 cm. over the crop, inside the plot, but also outside it, strengthening the areas with most catches, where the distance between traps will be of 25 meters.
• Mass trapping will take place throughout all the development of the plant.
• Mass trapping needs to be complemented with the phytosanitary treatments recommended by the technicians of Pest Protection Service.