A B C D E F G HIJ K L M N O PQR S TUV WXY Z

Pacific Pests & Pathogens - Mini Fact Sheet Edition

Maize Asian corn borer (115)

Photo 1. Caterpillar of the Asian corn borer, Ostrinia furnacalis, inside a maize cob. The caterpillars are pinkish-brown.

Summary

Widespread distribution. Asia, Southeast Asia, Oceania. On maize, including sweet corn, ginger, sorghum; also, capsicum, cotton and sugarcane.
Eggs laid at base and underside of leaves. Caterpillars are pinkish-brown, feeding first on leaves, later, on male and female flowers. Late stages bore into the stem, and may cause a wilt. Adult is a strong flyer.
Cultural control: remove tassels (male flowers) from 75% of the plants; resistant varieties.
Natural enemies: parasitoid wasps. IPM program in Papua New Guinea: release of Trichogramma plasseyensis, neem sprays, and tassel removal.
Chemical control: avoid synthetic insecticides (e.g., pyrethroids) as they will destroy natural enemies.

Common Name

Asian corn borer

Scientific Name

Ostrinia furnacalis

AUTHOR Grahame Jackson
Information from CABI (2012) Ostrinia furnacalis Crop Protection Compendium. (http://www.cabi.org/cpc/).

Produced with support from the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research under project PC/2010/090: Strengthening integrated crop management research in the Pacific Islands in support of sustainable intensification of high-value crop production, implemented by the University of Queensland and the Secretariat of the Pacific Community.

This mini fact sheet is a part of the app Pacific Pests and Pathogens

The mobile application is available from the Google Play Store and Apple iTunes.