TAXONOMIC IDENTIFICATION OF SPECIES OF "CUTWORM LARVAE" IN THE CULTURE OF ALFALFA (MEDICAGO SATIVA L.)

MARTINEZ, NORA ANGELICA; BONIVARDO, SILVIA LILIANA; PERALTA, PABLO EMILIANO; FUNES, MARIA BELÉN; SUAREZ, ALFREDO RUBEN

Mendoza

Congreso; XXXIV Reunión Científica Anual de la Sociedad de Biología de Cuyo; 2018

Sociedad Biológica de Cuyo

In the Semi-arid and Subhumid Pampean Region, the production systems are, in general, mixed. These systems are based on rotations of annual crops and perennial pastures, acquiring value the cultivation of alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.), this species being the main forage in the country and the basis of meat and milk production in the region. In Argentina, more than 80% of the damagecaused to the cultivation of alfalfa is caused by four main groups of insects, among them the complex of "cutworm larvae". This group of insects corresponds to the order Lepidoptera, family Noctuidae, subfamily Noctuinae, tribe Noctuini and is considered a pest of economic importance. The correct identification and quantification of the problem species allows to predict the moment of theoccurrence of attacks and their intensity, being able to exert more efficient containment measures on the different species, which constitutes the first step in a pest management planning. In the case of the Noctuidae, differences among different authors have been observed regarding the genera that it includes and the determination of some species, being under review. The objective of this work is to identify different species of "cutter caterpillars" -both of young and adult forms- for which 9 sampling stations, of 1 m2, were made every two weeks in alfalfa crops located in INTA Experimental Station San Luis (Villa Mercedes). The adults were captured using a light trap placed close to the crop. Identifications were made in the Laboratorio de Manejo Integrado de ProblemasFitosanitarios (FICA-UNSL), using the keys of Fichetti and San Blas, 2017 and Triplehorn and Johnson, 2005. The species identified are: Agrotis robusta (Blanchard), Agrotis sp., Helicoverpa gelotopoeon (Dyar), Dargida albilinea (Hübner), Feltia hispidula (Guenée), Feltia gypaetina (Guenée), y Feltia irritans (Köhler).