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Arthropods on Cotton: A Comparison Between Bt and Non-Bt Cotton

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Economic and Ecological Significance of Arthropods in Diversified Ecosystems

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Abstract

Adopting monocultures of traditional cotton enhances activity of pest insects and reduces the activity of predatory insects. Cultivating cotton with other crops such as sunflower (Helianthus annuus) and sorghum (Sorghum bicolor) served as refugia for predators of pests on cotton. Thus, increased habitat diversity by strip cropping in monocultures of cotton increases the population of predators. Transgenic cotton (Bt) largely suppressed populations of lepidopteran pests. Insecticidal sprays reduced populations of predators both on non-Bt and Bt cotton. Bt cotton alters the arthropod community by reducing the abundance of Helicoverpa populations. Bt cotton may also have indirect effects on the abundance of parasitoids and predators that specialize on lepidopteran pests. A 6-year research revealed that the impact of Bt cotton on minor pests and non-intended species was of less importance, particularly when compared to insecticides. Cotton ecosystem is uniquely characterized by secondary pest outbreaks, genetically engineered plants, changing arthropod communities and extrafloral (EF) nectaries. Each characteristic influences arthropod communities and crop productivity in turn in different ways. Although reduction in insecticidal use in some regions may alleviate the pest problems, much of the problems can be tackled by adopting integrated pest management (IPM) practices.

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Acknowledgements

The authors thank Nagaraja T. and Raghava T. for select review and Prabhulinga T., Harish Badigere, Dr. Vishlesh Shankar Nagrare and Dr. V Chinna Babu Naik for lending select photos.

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  1. Division of Entomology and Nematology, Indian Institute of Horticultural Research (IIHR), Hessaraghatta Lake Post, Bengaluru, 560089, Karnataka, India

    A. K. Chakravarthy

  2. Department of Agricultural Entomology, Gandhi Krishi Vignana Kendra (GKVK), University of Agricultural Sciences (UAS), Bengaluru, 560065, Karnataka, India

    Manja Naik & T. N. Madhu

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Correspondence to A. K. Chakravarthy .

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  1. Division of Entomology and Nematology, Indian Institute of Horticultural Research (IIHR), Bengaluru, Karnataka, India

    Akshay Kumar Chakravarthy

  2. Department of Entomology, University of Agricultural Sciences Gandhi Krishi Vignana Kendra (GKVK), Bengaluru, Karnataka, India

    Shakunthala Sridhara

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Chakravarthy, A.K., Naik, M., Madhu, T.N. (2016). Arthropods on Cotton: A Comparison Between Bt and Non-Bt Cotton. In: Chakravarthy, A., Sridhara, S. (eds) Economic and Ecological Significance of Arthropods in Diversified Ecosystems. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-1524-3_9

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