Symptom of damage:
- Presence of brown coloured egg mass near leaf tip
- Larva bores into central shoot of paddy seedling and tiller, causing drying of the central shoot known as “dead heart”
- If infestation occurs in grown up plant, the whole panicle becomes dried and known as “white ear”
- Affected shoots and panicles could be easily pulled by hand
Identification of insect pest:
- Eggs: are creamy white, flattened, oval and scale like and laid in mass and covered with buff coloured hairs
- Larva: pale yellow with dark brown head
- Pupa: White silken cocoon are found inside the stem
- Adult:
Female moth: Bright yellowish brown; forewings with a black spot.
Male moth: Smaller with pale yellow; forewings without black spot |
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