PESTS OF COTTON - SAP FEEDERS & FOLIAGE FEEDERS

More than 1326 species of insects have been reported attacking cotton in the world. However, in India, only 162 species have been recorded, among which only 15 species may be called as major pests due to their occurrence in serious proportions almost every year.the introduction of Bt cotton has caused changes in insect pest complex in cotton ecosystem. The incidence of bollworm viz., American bollworm, pink bollworm and spotted bollworm is low on Bt cotton. However, Bt cotton does not provide effective control of tobacco caterpillar and sucking pests viz., aphid, whitefly and mealy bug.