- Monophagous in nature.
- Female moth has bright yellowish forewings with a distinct black spot at the center with brownish yellow tuft of hair at the tip of abdomen. Hind wings are straw coloured.
- Full grown larva is (2.5 cm) yellowish white with orange yellow head.
- Newly hatched larvae hang down by silken thread, enter the leaf sheath, feed for 2-3 days and then bore into the stem, usually 5-10 cm above the water level.
- The attacked plants show "dead heart" in vegetative stage and "white ear" at panicle formation
- Since the egg masses are laid on upper half of leaves, clipping the tops of leaf blade before transplanting is recommended.
- Harvesting the crop close to soil surface, ploughing or flooding the field after harvest kills the larvae hibernating in the stubbles.
- The insecticidal application may be commenced when 5% dead hearts, 1 % white ear or 1 egg mass or adult per m2 are seen.
Crops: Rice Insect Pests
Yellow Syem borer - Scirpophaga incertulas (Pyralidae : Lepidoptera)
