Effect of landscape factors and production practices on seasonal abundance of the rootworm species Diabrotica undecimpunctata and D. balteata and incidence of crop injury in peanut

The southern corn rootworm, Diabrotica undecimpunctata, is native to the US where it is a serious pest of peanut. The banded cucumber beetle, D. balteata, is native to the tropics, but it has expanded its range to include most of the US peanut production area. The purpose of this study was to define seasonal variation in adult rootworm populations in peanut fields and to evaluate the effect of soil type, irrigation and proximity to corn on rootworm abundance and injury to peanut. Insecticide use data were also collected for each study site. In 2020 sweep nets and plant volatile lures attached to yellow sticky traps were used to sample rootworm populations in eleven peanut fields from July-September. Diabrotica balteata was nine times more abundant than D. undecimpunctata across all fields. Seasonal abundance of adult rootworms in commercial peanut fields in Georgia was monitored in 2021 and 2022 using plant volatile lures attached to yellow sticky traps. The location and distance from each study site to corn was noted. Preliminary results suggest that rootworm abundance and pod injury were higher in peanut fields adjacent to corn.