2007 Annual Report 1a.Objectives (from AD-416) 1. Determine yield and fiber quality losses due to tarnished plant bug (TPB) and stink bug (SB)infestations after first bloom. 2. Monitor movement of adult TPB and SB between and within crop and natural environments. 1b.Approach (from AD-416) Objective 1. Determine yield and quality losses from TPB and SB. An area of on-going research that needs to be continued in 2006 and 2007 is evaluating TPB and SB damage from adults and nymphs. Adult and nymph stages of both SB and TPB occur at the same time, so it is often necessary to make management decisions for the overall bug complex. However, each species or life stage may not cause an equivalent amount and type of damage. Therefore it is critical to gain an understanding of the amount and type of damage caused by each species and life stage. This trial will use sleeve cages over individual cotton plants using 5 cotton plants per treatment. The trial will have 4 insect treatments (TPB adults, TPB nymphs, SB adults, SB nymphs) at 4 densities (0, 1, 2, or 4 insects per plant). Cotton treatments will be squares only, small bolls (<7 days old) only, large bolls (>7 days old) only and all fruiting structures present. Fruiting structures on the plant other than the desired type will be removed by hand prior to the experiment. Insects will be caged on the cotton plant for 4 days. When the cages are removed, the fruiting structures present will be marked to enable later data collection. From the trial until harvest, the field will be sprayed for bugs to minimize any damage that may occur following the experiment. At harvest, the percentage of bolls remaining, the degree of stained lint, hard lock and weight will be collected. Cotton from each treatment will be ginned using a breeder’s gin and lint will be sent to a laboratory for fiber quality analysis. Objective 2. Monitor movement of TPB and SB adults between and within crop and natural environments. Preliminary research is being conducted during 2005 to determine a suitable marker for field studies of TPB movement that will permit the marking of large numbers of insects in the field and retention of the mark for several days so that movement can be monitored over time. The selected marker will be applied periodically to the selected fields throughout the summer to monitor movement between various habitats. Treatments will be located in both the delta and hills regions to detect any differences in movement of populations in these two regions. Movement will be monitored between 1-acre or larger fields of cotton, soybeans, corn, weeds and woodland. Selected habitats represent the major habitats common to both delta and hills regions. Fields will be monitored regularly from the time cotton is squaring until it is defoliated at various distances from neighboring habitats to determine the rate and range of insect movement. Specific monitoring methods will be determined by the marking method. Records of weather and habitat disturbances (spraying, mowing, tillage, etc.) will be collected so these factors can be included in movement predictions. 3.Progress Report This report serves to document research conducted under a Specific Cooperative Agreement between the Southern Insect Management Research Unit, USDA-ARS, Stoneville, MS, and Mississippi State University. Additional details for this project may be found in the in-house project 0500-00044-013-00D, "Area-Wide Pest Management of the Tarnished Plant Bug in Cotton in Absence of the Boll Weevil." The objective of this cooperative agreement is to improve management strategies for tarnished plant bugs and stink bugs in cotton. The cooperator has visited scientists at the Southern Insect Management Research Unit numerous times to develop a research plan to address relevant questions surrounding management of these pests. Field cage studies are currently being conducted to determine injury and subsequent yield losses for these insects. Due to the early stages of these experiments. In addition to management questions, the cooperator is working closely with ARS, Southern Insect Management Research Unit to monitor tarnished plant bug susceptibility to commonly used insecticides. Based on the first year of testing, sufficient variability in tarnished plant bug susceptibility to organophosphates and pyrethroids exists throughout Mississippi to expect control problems in some locations. This agreement was monitored by one conference call and two site visits.