Cry1F No Longer Effective Against Western Bean Cutworm
Western bean cutworm is a serious corn pest in the northern Texas Panhandle and occurs in lower numbers as far south as Hale County. Several years ago the insect underwent a major range expansion and is now the primary corn caterpillar pest in several Midwestern states to as far east as New York and as far north as Canada. This year there have been major field failures of Cry1F in these areas, and the Land Grant entomologists have written an open letter to the transgenic seed industry to prompt them to stop claiming that Cry1F corn controls western bean cutworm. Laboratory data confirming resistance to Cry1F are in the scientific publication process. Given these new developments, we will be modifying our suggestions for Bt corn to control western bean cutworm to include primarily those that contain Vip3a in combination with other toxins. Our now outdated suggestions are in Table A20 (page 32) of Managing Insect and Mite Pests of Texas Corn , 2016. You will easily find the hybrids with ...