Climate change, with warmer summers and milder winters, is increasingly bringing non-native insect pests to farms in Austria. In the past year, reports about the green rice bug in particular increased, which often causes enormous damage to legumes, vegetables and fruit. AGES and the agricultural chambers have therefore now started a joint monitoring of rice bugs.
The rice bug monitoring should make it possible to better monitor the situation and to provide farms in the affected regions with more efficient care measures. Until a few years ago, the green rice bug was only widespread in Europe in the Mediterranean region. Since 2015, the animal is also found in Austria. According to the broadcast, a massive plague was first reported in a soybean field in Vienna in 2021.
Numerous larvae and adults can be found in allotments and community gardens in urban regions such as Vienna and Graz. Isolated reports in Upper and Lower Austria indicate that the green rice bug is spreading in Austria.
Infestation can significantly reduce the quality of the harvest
The pests multiply rapidly in dry and hot summer months. The animal mainly infects legumes, but numerous vegetable, fruit and arable crops, ornamental trees and plants are also affected. A pest can significantly reduce the quality of the crop and also affect the taste of fruits, as they emit an unpleasant smelling secretion, the release said.
“It is to be feared that this pest, which is difficult to combat, will also lead to significant yield losses in Austria. In order to save food and advise our farms to carry out checks and care measures at the right time in the affected regions, we maintain a joint monitoring including an alert service for important measures,” said Josef Moosbrugger, president of the Austrian Chamber of Agriculture.
In the nymph stage, the green rice bug is initially black with white spots. The adults have a uniform green and red-brown base color. But there are also specimens with a white head and front of the pronotum. There is a risk of confusion with the green stink bug native to Austria. However, the green rice bug is clearly distinguished from this species by a row of white dots on the underside of the pronotum and the light-colored, transparent part of the wings.
Control with approved insecticides is usually not sufficient
Direct control with approved insecticides against sucking insects is possible, but usually no sufficient effect can be achieved against the adult animals. Natural opponents, such as the parasitic wasp Trissolcus basalis, which is only one to two millimeters in size, and a caterpillar fly exist, but are not available in Austria.
Source: Krone
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