No-till-agriculture
Guides
Dectes texanus
Dectes stem borer, Texas prick, soybean stem borer
Dectes texanus is a native North American longhorn beetle (Cerambycidae: Lamiinae) that has emerged as a significant agricultural pest of soybeans and sunflowers in the Midwestern and Great Plains regions of the United States. Adults are characterized by antennae longer than their bodies and a pale gray coloration. Larvae tunnel inside plant stems from July through October, then girdle the stem base internally before overwintering, causing pre-harvest lodging and yield losses. The species has expanded its range and pest status dramatically since the 1980s, correlating with increased soybean acreage and adoption of no-till farming practices. Originally associated with wild hosts including ragweed and cocklebur, it colonized cultivated soybeans approximately 50 years ago.
Sternechus
true weevils
Sternechus is a genus of true weevils (family Curculionidae) containing more than 50 described species. The genus is best known for Sternechus subsignatus, a significant agricultural pest of soybean in South America known locally as 'picudo grande' (big weevil). This species was first detected in southern Brazil in the 1970s and has since spread to northern Brazil and Argentina, where it causes economic damage through stem boring that can result in stand loss. Some species in the genus have been treated as distinct species in certain regions; for example, S. subsignatus in northern Argentina is sometimes considered S. pinguis. The genus is part of the extraordinarily diverse Curculionidae, which with approximately 60,000 species represents one of the largest families in the animal kingdom.