How to control taro locust in rice

The scientific name Gesonula punctifrons (Stdl) belongs to Orthoptera, Acridoidea. Distribution in Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Jiangxi, Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Taiwan, Sichuan, Yunnan and other provinces.

Host rice, taro, lotus root, wild narcissus, sugarcane, corn and other plants.

The damage is characterized by adult and nymph nibbling leaves into notches or mesophyll leaving epidermis, purple small horizontal spots on injured leaves, affecting photosynthesis and hindering plant growth.

Morphological characteristics Female adult body length 19-22mm, male adult 17 - 18mm, yellow-green body. The posterior part of the compound eye and the upper part of the lateral piece of the prothorax have black-brown longitudinal stripes, extending backward to both sides of the middle and posterior thoracic plate. The front wing is yellow-green, the rear wing base is pale blue, and the tip is slightly smoky. The hind leg segment is yellow-green, the lower knee segment is red, the intestinal segment is pale blue, and the base is red. The head is shorter than the prothorax. The frontal plane inclines backward and forms an acute angle with the top of the head; the frontal plane is raised with obvious longitudinal grooves. The width of the vertex between the compound eyes is narrower than or equal to the width of the facial eminence between the antennae. compound eye oval. Antennas filiform, reaching to or beyond posterior margin of prototum. The anterior part of the pronotum is narrow, the posterior part is wide, the median carina is weak, and it is cut by 3 transverse grooves, and the posterior transverse groove lies behind the middle part.

The leading edge is nearly straight and the trailing edge is circular arc. The front and rear wings are well developed, exceeding the tip of the hind leg segment. There are 8-9 spines on the medial side of hindfoot, and the distance between the first and second spines at the top is longer than that of each spine. The eggs are 4-5mm long, cylindrical, pale yellow at first, gradually dark yellow, lumpy, and covered with cystic-like glial protectors. The nymph is light green at first hatching and gradually changes to yellow-green.

Life habits one generation per year, in Guangdong can occur 3 generations. Overwintering as adults under litter. From late March to early April of the next year, eggs are laid in May and June. The eggs are laid in the middle and lower parts of petioles. The holes secrete yellow brown glue. Each female lays 8-10 eggs, each egg has about 6 - 18 eggs. The egg period is 20-32 days. The nymph is 6 years old. The duration is more than 30 days. From October to November, it enters the winter period. Adults are active during the day, and when the weather is hot at noon, they often jump on the leaves and rarely feed. In the field, it occurs more frequently from July to early September every year.

Control method (1) Scratch unhatched eggs at the oviposition hole during the peak oviposition period. When the oviposition hole is smooth and rust-brown juice flows out, the eggs have hatched or nearly hatched. As long as the time of scraping is accurate, the damage can be reduced. (2)Spraying at the peak of adult and nymph stage, see Oxya chinensis for the types of pesticides used.