This document discusses several major insect pests that affect sugarcane crops. It describes 24 insect pests that can cause heavy losses in sugarcane yields and quality. Some of the key pests covered include the Chilo infuscatellus borer, Scirpophaga nivella borer, Holotrichia serrata beetle, Odontotermes obesus termite, Melanapis glomerata scale, and Ripersia sacchari mealybug. For each pest, the document discusses their scientific classification, life cycle, symptoms of damage caused, and integrated pest management strategies that can be used for control.

1. R.K. Panse
Asstt. Prof. (Entomology)
Lecture no. 7
INSECT PESTS OF SUGARCANE
Subject: Pests of crop and stored grain and their Management

2. INTRODUCTION
There are approximately 288 insects that infest
sugarcane of which about 24 of them cause heavy
losses in quality as well as in quantity.
Long growth duration that sugarcane crop needs, it
is extremely vulnerable to insect pests, some
estimates suggest that 20.0% is the actual decline
in production due to pests.

3. Insect pest Scientific name Family Order
Chilo infuscatellus Pyralidae Lepidoptera
Chilo sacchariphagus
indicus Pyralidae
Lepidoptera
Scirpophaga nivella Pyralidae
Lepidoptera
B
O
R
E
R
C
O
M
P
L
E
X

4. Holotrichia
serrata
Melolonthidae Coleoptera
Odontotermes
obesus
Termitidae Isoptera
Melanapis
glomerata
Diaspididae Hemiptera
Ripersia sacchari Pseudococcidae Hemiptera
Pyrilla perpusilla Lophopidae
Hemiptera
Ceratobvacuna
lanigera
Aphididae
Hemiptera
Aleurolobus
barodensis
Alerodidae
Hemiptera
Continued…

5. Host range: Pearl millet, oat, barley and maize
Distribution: India, Pakistan, Indonesia, Thiawan,
Philippines, Korea, Afghanistan and Burma.
Systematic position
Scientific name: Chilo infuscatellus
Family: Pyralidae
Order: Lepidoptera

6. Larva
pupa
adult
Egg Flat – scale like eggs are laid in 3-5 rows
on the lower surface of leaves
Larva is dirty white
with five dark violet
longitudinal stripes
and dark brown
head
Adult: Pale greyish brown
moth with black dots near the
coastal margin of the forewings
and with white hind
wings.

7. Biology

8. Attack 1-3 month old crop and cause
Dead heart, which can be easily pulled
out.
Rotten portion of the cane coloured
dead heart emits an offensive odour.
A number of bore holes at the base
of the shoot just above the ground
level.
DEAD HEART
ROTTEN BASE
WITH HOLE
SYMPTOMS OF DAMAGE

9. Systematic position
Scientific name : Scirpophaga excerptalis
Family : Pyralidae
Order : Lepidoptera
Host range: Millets and other grasses
Distribution: India, Pakistan, China, Formosa, Japan,
Philippines, Thailand, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Laos,
Cambodia, Vietnam, Burma and Taiwan.

10. Biology

11. Adult
Larva
Egg
Milky white moth
Brownish tuft of
silken hair at the
tip of abdomen
 Full grown larva
is 25- 30mm
 Long creamy
white & rather
sluggish.
Adult
Dull white elongate
eggs
Covered by buff
coloured hairs
from female anal
tuft

12. SYMPTOMS OF DAMAGE
Parallel rows of short holes
in the emerging leaves causes
a white streak which later
turns reddish brown
Dead heart in grown up canes
reddish brown in color which
cannot be easily pulled .
In tillering phase of the crop,
the attacked shoots die, side
shoots (tillers) develop
producing a bunchy top
appearance Bunchy
top
Parallel
rows of
short
holes

13.  Time of planting
 Early planting during December –
January to escape the shoot borer
incidence.
 Manuring
 Avoid excess use nitrogenus fertilizers.
 Stalk borer and internode borer.
 Trash mulching and earthing up
 Early shoot borer and Internode borer
 Detrashing
 Internode borer and Stalk borer
IPM for Sugarcane borers
EARTHING UP
DETRASHING
M
A
N
U
R
I
N
G
 Use of pheromone traps @ 5/acre for
monitoring of adult moths

14.  Removal and destruction of infested cane
 Early shoot borer
 Collection and destruction of eggs
 Internode borer and Top borer
 Cultivation of resistance variety
 Co 975, Co 46, Co 7304, Co 312,
Co 421, Co 661, Co 7706, CO 7005
 Irrigation at closer intervals for managing
 Practice deep harvesting to destroy
stubbles
 Early shoot borer
 Removal of water shoots to destroy
 Top shoot borer

15. For Early shoot borer :
• Trichogramma chilonis
For Internode borer :
• Trichogramma chilonis
For Top borer :
• Trichogramma chilonis or T. japonicum
• Isotima javensis
 Release 50,000 Trichogramma sp./ha at 10-20 days interval from
July onwards upto October against cane borer complex.
 Release of Isotima javensis against 3rd and 4th broods of top borer.
S. inferens
I. javensis

16. Insecticide and
formulation
Dosage Method and time of
application
SHOOT BORER
Chlorpyrifos 20EC 1kg a.i ha -1 (5 litre) Soil drenching at planting
and if need be at 45 days
after planting.
Cypermethrin10%
EC
260-304 ml in 200-
280 l of water/acre
Sprayed around the base of
plants at 30days and if need
be at 60days after planting.
Fipronil 5%SC 1500-2000 ml/ha Properly sprayed on crop
canopy as well as basal part
of the plant after 30-45 days
of planting
NSKE 5 % 25 Kg/ha Sprayed on soil as well as on
crop to prevent larval feeding

17. TOP BORER
Carbofuran 3 G or
Phorate 10 G
1 kg a.i./ha (33 kg)
or
3 kg a.i./ha (30 kg)
Soil application during last
week of June or first week of
July against third brood of
the pest in sub-tropical India.
INTER NODE BORER
Monocrotophos 36
SL
3 kg a.i./ha (7.5 lit.)
Both foliar and Soil
application during July-
August.
Continued…

18.  Workers attack the
newly planted setts and
affect germination.
 They enter through cut ends of
setts & feed on the soft tissue.
 The tunnel is filled with the soil.
 The termites attack setts, shoots,
canes and also stubbles
 Entire shoot dries up and can
be pulled out easily
SYMPTOMS OF DAMAGE

19. The use of partially decomposed manure should be
avoided
Locate and destroy the termite colony near by field
Irrigation water with crude oil emulsion.
 The removal of decaying organic matters cow dung,
wood or dry stubbles from the field.
 Setts treatment with Imidacloprid (0.1%) or
Chlorpyriphos 20 EC 0.04 % for 5 min.
 Application of well rotten Neem cake manure @ 60
Cartloads/ ha.
Spray Chlorpyriphos 20%EC 750 ml/ha
IPM strategy for Termite

20. Scientific name: Pyrilla perpusilla
Family: Lophopidae
Order: Hemiptera)
Distribution and status: India, Pakistan
Host range: Sugarcane, wheat, barley, oats, maize,
sorghum, baru, guinea grass and sudan grass

21. Bionomics
The adults lay 300 - 536 eggs in clusters on the underside
of leaves.
Egg period 8 - 28 days.
Nymphal period: 30-40 days.
Pupal period 2 - 6 months.
Adult live for about 2 - 5 months.
3- 4 generations are completed in a year.

22.  Pale greenish yellow eggs in clusters
 Eggs are laid on the underside of leaves,
covered over with a white filamentous
waxy material secreted by the female
 Newly hatched nymphs are milky
white in color
 They posses a characteristic feather
like processes covered by wax
 Adults are straw coloured with wings
folded like a roof on the back
 Head is prominently drawn forward as
a sort of rostrum.
EGG
N
Y
M
P
H
ADULT

23. SYMPTOMS OF DAMAGE
Adults and the nymphs suck leaf
sap from the under surface of the
lower leaves.
Leaves become yellow, top
leaves get dried up and lateral
buds germinate
Hoppers exude honeydew, result
the leaves are completely covered
by the sooty mould. This affects
photosynthesis.
Black sooty
mould
Yellowing in
leaf

24.  Burn trashes after harvesting canes
 Remove lower leaves bearing egg cluster.
 Ratooning should be avoided
 Balance Nitrogen should be applied.
 Dust malathion 5% @ 40kg/ha. or
Spray malathion 50 EC @ 1.25kga.i./ha.
 Release of 8,000-12,000 cocoons or 3.2 to 4
lakh eggs of Epiricania melanoleuca per ha.
during July-August
 Use Metarhizium anisopliae (fungal pathogen)
IPM strategy for Pyrilla
E. melanoleuca

25.  Nymphs and adults feed by sucking
the juice and cause shrivelling up
and stunting of canes.
 Nodal region is more infested than
internodal region.
 Infested crop losses its vigour, canes
shrivel, non-opening of leaves &
ultimately cane dries up
 Such canes when slit open appear
brownish red
SYMPTOMS OF DAMAGE
Node
Melanaspis glomerata (Diaspididae:
Hemiptera)

26.  Stripping of cane leaves may minimize attack
 Select and plant the scale insect free setts
 Avoid water stagnation for the longer period
 Detrash the crop at 150th and 210th day of planting.
 Give hot water treatment before planting
 Presoak the setts in 0.1% solution Malathion 50 EC
 Spray 1.25 litres of Malathion 50 EC or 2 litres of
Di-methoate 30 EC in 1250 litres of water per ha
 Spray methyl demeton 25 EC @ 2ml/lit of water
IPM strategy for Sugarcane Scale

27. S. N. : Saccharicoccus sacchari
Family: Pseudococcidae:
Order: Hemiptera
Distribution and status: Sugarcane growing areas
Host range: Sugarcane, reeds and some grasses

28. SYMPTOMS OF DAMAGE
Pinkish oval insects beneath leaf
sheath & on the nodes, with whitish
waxy coating.
 Nymph and adult suck juice from cane in group
& reduces vigour of the plant
 It also attack roots
 Honey dew secretion leads to development of
Sooty mould which gives blackish appearance
to canes.

29. IPM strategy for Sugarcane Mealy bug
 Use resistant varieties like CO 439, CO 443, CO 720, CO 730
 Drain excess water from the field
 Detrash the crop on 150 and 210 Days After Planting.
 Apply methyl parathion 50 EC 1000 ml.
 Rubbing of setts with gunny bag pieces dipped in Malathion
(0.1% solution.)
 Biocontrol agents
Brumoides suturalis
Leptomastix dactyolopii
B. suturalis L. dactyolopii
(Predator
)
(Parasitoid)