Professional paper

Spodoptera frugiperda - maize pest that threatens Europe

Martina Kadoić Balaško orcid.org/0000-0002-3717-5301 ; Sveučilište u Zagrebu, Agronomski fakultet, Zavod za poljoprivrednu zoologiju
Maja Čačija orcid.org/0000-0001-9841-2721 ; Sveučilište u Zagrebu, Agronomski fakultet, Zavod za poljoprivrednu zoologiju
Darija Lemić orcid.org/0000-0002-1175-3716 ; Sveučilište u Zagrebu, Agronomski fakultet, Zavod za poljoprivrednu zoologiju
Helena Virić Gašparić orcid.org/0000-0002-4275-4033 ; Sveučilište u Zagrebu, Agronomski fakultet, Zavod za poljoprivrednu zoologiju
Renata Bažok orcid.org/0000-0003-1655-8140 ; Sveučilište u Zagrebu, Agronomski fakultet, Zavod za poljoprivrednu zoologiju

Abstract

According to FAOSTAT in 2018 the maize was sown on approximately 1.147 billion ha. Along with wheat, rice, and potatoes, maize is the world's most important crop. In Croatia, out of 815,000 ha of arable land, about 250,000 ha are sown with maize, so we can also say that corn is the most important crop in Croatia too. The fall armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda, JE Smith) is an important pest of maize from the Noctuidae family. Damages are caused by larvae that feed on the leaves and can cause complete defoliation and destruction of the plant. Fall armyworm larva can feed on 80 different plant species with a preference for maize. For a long time, the pest was present only in America, however, in January 2016 this pest was observed for the first time in Central and West Africa. During two years, the fall armyworm almost has spread across the entire African continent. Expansion data from June 2019 indicate the presence of the pest in Egypt, which is the closest to Europe so far. Given the extremely rapid spread of the fall armyworm over the past three years, the fear that the pest could reach Europe very quickly is justified. It is extremely important to inform farmers about the harmfulness and importance of this pest, which can seriously jeopardize maize production in Europe.

Keywords

fall armyworm, maize, invasive pest

Hrčak ID:

246945

URI

https://hrcak.srce.hr/246945

Publication date:

1.12.2020.

Article data in other languages: croatian

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