The fall armyworm Spodoptera frugiperda has spread and damaged corn in many African and a few Asian Countries recently. A recent outbreak (2019) of Spodoptera species in corn producing areas in the Island of Sumatra was suspected to be a new invasive species. Field observations were made on May 16, 2019 in the District of East and Central Lampung to identify the attacking Spodoptera species, and to observe and determine the damages. Based on the morphological characteristics, the “Y” inverted shape on the head capsule and the patterns of black spots on the abdominal segments (square and trapezoidal forms), the species was confirmed as S. frugiperda. The larvae heavily damaged the early stage of corn (approximately 2-week old) with 100% plants infested and each plant was occupied by a medium or large larva; while older corn received less damage. Larvae fed on the leaves causing defoliation before feeding on the growing point. Different damage symptoms due to S. frugiperda were compared to those of the Asian corn borer, Ostrinia furnacalis, and further discussion was made to determine the potential consequences of this new threat to the corn production in Indonesia.

No abstract

The White-Bellied Planthopper (Hemiptera: Delphacidae) Infesting Corn Plants in South Lampung, Indonesia. Corn plants in South Lampung were infested by newly-found delphacid planthoppers. The planthopper specimens were collected from heavily-infested corn fields in Natar area, South Lampung. We identified the specimens as the white-bellied planthopper Stenocranus pacificus Kirkaldy (Hemiptera: Delphacidae), and reported their field population abundance.

Fruit fly monitoring is an important part of integrated pest management since it provides information about fruit flies species composition in any given area. The aim of this study was to find out species composition of fruit fly in the city of Sorong, and both Sorong and Raja Ampat Regencies. Sampling was conducted from June to November 2016 using trapping method. There were 19 species of fruit flies in the whole sampling locations, consist of 11 species attracted to cue-lure and 8 species attracted to methyl eugenol. Bactrocera frauenfeldi was the dominant species in trap baited with cue-lure, while B. umbrosa and B. dorsalis were dominant in trap baited with methyl eugenol. Fruit fly diversity index in Raja Ampat Regency and city of Sorong were low while diversity index in Sorong Regency was relatively moderate. INTISARIMonitoring lalat buah merupakan bagian penting dalam pengelolaan hama terpadu yang memberikan informasi tentang komposisi lalat buah di suatu area. Tujuan dari penelitian ini adalah untuk mengetahui komposisi spesies lalat buah di Kabupaten Sorong, kota Sorong dan Kabupaten Raja Ampat. Pengambilan sampel dilakukan mulai dari Juni sampai November 2016 dengan metode pemasangan perangkap. Total terdapat 19 spesies lalat buah dari seluruh wilayah pengambilan sampel, dengan 11 spesies yang tertarik cue lure dan 8 spesies tertarik metil eugenol. Bactrocera frauenfeldi adalah lalat buah yang paling dominan pada perangkap dengan atraktan cue lure sedangkan B. dorsalis serta B. umbrosa dominan pada perangkap dengan atraktan metil eugenol. Indeks keragaman jenis lalat buah di Kabupaten Raja Ampat dan Kota Sorong termasuk rendah sedangkan di Kabupaten Sorong indeks keragamannya relatif sedang.

Fruit flies (Diptera: Tephritidae) are major pests of fruits and vegetables in many countries, including Indonesia. Knowledge of the fruit fly host range in a specific area is an important part of the area-wide pest management program to reduce the pest problem. The aim of this study was to extend and update the information on the host range of fruit flies in the Regency of Sleman, Yogyakarta. This area is one of the centers of fruit production, particularly snake fruit in Indonesia. Fruit sampling was conducted from August 2019 to February 2020 in four sub-districts in Sleman consisting of different types of agro-ecosystems. Fruit rearing was carried out in the laboratory followed by identification of the fruit and fruit flies that emerged to species level. From the 23 species of fruits belonging to 14 different families that were collected, the following 6 species of fruit flies emerged: Bactrocera dorsalis, B. carambolae, B. umbrosa, B. albistrigata, B. mcgregori, and Zeugodacus cucurbitae. Bactrocera dorsalis and B. carambolae utilized the widest range of hosts, 12 and 11 species of fruits, respectively. Syzygium cumini, Malpighia emarginata, and Phaleria macrocarpa were recorded for the first time as new hosts of B. carambolae in Indonesia. Additional data of B. dorsalis and B. carambolae infesting salak cv. pondoh is also reported.

Integrated Pest Management (IPM) is a conception or way of thinking about Management of Plant Pests with a multidisciplinary ecological approach to managing pest populations by utilizing a variety of compatible control tactics in a coordinating management unit. Acoustic signals produced by insects can be used as a source of information about their presence and behaviour. Problems encountered in observing acoustic signals produced by animals in the context of integrated pest control are supporting equipment factors that can facilitate data acquisition, data management, and species identification based on audio recordings (species identification). The objective of this study is to design microcomputer-based bioacoustics monitoring system that is integrated with the cloud. In more detail, the specific objectives are (1) Designing microcomputer-based bioacoustics monitoring system as a supporter of data acquisition systems with cloud integration features, (2) Testing the performance of a bioacoustics monitoring system for field observations. Bioacoustics monitoring system based on a microcomputer with cloud integration has been developed to support the implementation of integrated pest management. The developed system uses a raspberry pi as a central processing unit in local for data acquisition systems that are connected to the cloud using the Internet connection. As a result of the laboratory-scale test in indoor and outdoor setup, the system could record sample insect sound (Katydid and Cricket) clearly for both conditions, although noise from environment also appears in data analysis affecting the insect identification in future utilization.

Red palm mite, Raoiella indica Hirst (Acari: Tenuipalpidae), has emerged as a new threat to coconut plantation in Indonesia. To control this mite, understanding on its biology is essential.

Chaetocnema pulicaria and C. denticulata are recognized as vectors of Stewart wilt disease caused by Pantoea stewartii on maize. These insects have not been reported yet in Indonesia, but Stewart wilt disease has been reported in Java and Sumatera Islands. Genus Chaetocnema which presented in Indonesia is C.basalis. It is not cleared whether C. basalis is a vector for Stewart wilt disease like C. pulicaria and C. denticulata. This reseach was aimed to conduct the confirmation on status whether C. basalis have a role as vector of Stewart wilt disease on maize or not. C. basalis imago were collected from maize growing areas in Yogyakarta, and then starved for 24 h. Treatments were applied by placing imago of C. basalis on infected-P. stewartii plants for 72 h. Five insects were then transferred to each plot of healthy plant (1 plot consisted of 5 plants) for 72 h. For control, imago of C. basalis were put on healthy plants for 72 h and five insects were then transferred to other healthy plant (1 plot consisted of 5 plants) for 72 h. Each treatment was repeated three times. On the fifteenth days after transmission, PCR assays were carried out on leaf samples and isolates of bacteria. All sampled leaves analysis showed that there were no Stewart wilt diseases transmission based on PCR assay and bacterial isolates. This concluded that C. basalis is not a vector for Stewart wilt disease on maize.