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The Cereal Leaf Beetle Today (Oulema melanopus L.)
Author(s) -
Ruppel Robert F.
Publication year - 1972
Publication title -
journal of environmental quality
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.888
H-Index - 171
eISSN - 1537-2537
pISSN - 0047-2425
DOI - 10.2134/jeq1972.00472425000100030013x
Subject(s) - pest analysis , pest control , biology , leaf beetle , agronomy , population , biological pest control , agroforestry , ecology , botany , larva , demography , sociology
The history, biology, hosts, present control, and current research on the cereal leaf beetle (Oulema melanopus L.) are presented as parts of a continuing project on the control of this pest. The beetle is a serious pest of spring grains, and a lesser pest of fall grains. It is spreading and increasing rapidly in the northeastern USA and southeastern Canada. Insecticides are the only control measure now recommended. Lines of wheats (Triticum aestivum L. em. Thell.) resistant to the pest have been found. Parasites of the beetle have been introduced from Europe and show promise for its control. The biology of the pest is under intensive study for leads toward more effective means for its control. The population dynamics of the beetle are under study and the results of this study will be used to model control strategies for the pest. The breadth and integration of special fields in the cereal leaf beetle project is suggested as a model for the development of rational controls for other insects.