Stored product insects at a rice mill: Temporal and spatial patterns and implications for pest management

Monitoring is fundamental to integrated pest management programs since it provides feedback on effectiveness of prevention programs and helps with targeting interventions as needed and evaluating their effectiveness. Rice mills are spatially complex facilities that have a combination of rough rice storage bins, buildings where rice is milled and processed, and warehouses and bulk storage bins where finished product is held before shipment. Each of these structures can have its own suite of insect species, different levels of risk, as well as different suites of management tools available. At a large rice mill in Brazil, stored product insect activity was monitored using food bait traps placed around rough rice receiving areas and storage bins; inside building containing white rice mill, rice flour mill, and packaging; and inside building for processing parboiled rice. The facility was monitored from 2010 to 2018 with 100 traps. Major pest species recovered at the facility included Sitophilus oryzae, Sitophilus zeamais, Rhyzopertha dominica, Tribolium castaneum, Cryptolestes ferrugineus, Ahasverus advena, Oryzaephilus surinamensis, Typhaea stercorea, Anthicus floralis, and Nitidulidae species. Temporal and spatial patterns in abundance were evaluated for each of the major species and for major functional groups (primary feeders, secondary feeders, and fungal feeders). Monitoring data generated was used to guide pest management programs and also provided the information needed to develop management thresholds.