A Global Perspective of Rice Brown Planthopper Management III - Strategies for BPH Management

Rice Brown Plant hopper, Nilaparvata lugens (Stal) (BPH) management strategy at present involves traditional approaches like, Using Resistant Varieties, Cultural Management and Use of Insecticides. Natural Biological Control is considered only in delaying insecticide application at favorable times and Use of Bio-Agents is non-existent. Varietal resistance could not achieve desired results due to inefficient and inadequate screening and breeding techniques presently employed to transfer highly complex multi-gene multi QTL based trait. This can possibly be improved by following traditional approach of screening and selecting plants directly under field conditions. Leaving alley-ways, optimum nitrogen application, optimum plant population are largely followed in many countries. New possibilities by changing the rice planting design can be experimented and exploited. Insecticide use is the major tactic followed in almost all the countries with inevitable consequences of natural enemy destruction and more importantly insecticide resistance development and pest resurgence. The scope of utilizing natural enemies as a major tactic appeared to be remote. Alien sources like lectins or Similar chemicals which can directly affect BPH, Alien organisms or the chemicals that disrupt the physiological base of Galbachina, Alien genes which can produce compounds related to insect molting hormones or juvenile hormones, in rice plants are the distant goals but worthy of initiation. After quantitative assessment of water vapor pressure and humidity on BPH, Chemicals interfering with water balance in BPH and even suitable dusts to mechanically disrupt insect body wall seem to have scope in future .