BE Wilson #
Louisiana State University Agricultural Center, Sugar Research Station, Saint Gabriel, LA, USA
Two stemborers in the family Crambidae, the sugarcane borer, Diatraea saccharalis, and the Mexican rice borer, Eoreuma loftini, are the most economically damaging insect pests of sugarcane (Saccharum hybrids) in Louisiana. Increased adoption of borer-resistant cultivars during the early 2000s greatly reduced reliance on chemical controls in the years since. Recent commercial release of highly susceptible cultivars threatens to undo these advances. Continued evaluation of modern sugarcane germplasm shows that borer resistance remains present in the Louisiana breeding programs but is under-utilized. Further, recent evidence shows genotype by environment variation is prevalent in resistance expression among cultivars highlighting the need for evaluation over multiple years and locations. Release of sugarcane cultivars with high levels of borer resistance as well as desirable economic traits is needed to maximize benefits of cultivar resistance to the Louisiana sugarcane industry. Further, better understanding of mechanisms of stemborer cultivar resistance is needed to improve integrated management of these two species as well as other sugarcane stemborers globally.