Genotypic resistance in sorghum to head bug, Calocoris angustatus Lethiery

Abstract

Sorghum head bug, Calocoris angustatus Leth., is an important pest of grain sorghum. We screened nearly 15000 germplasm accessions for resistance to this pest between 1980 and 1990 under natural and headcage conditions. Data were recorded on bug numbers, grain damage (1 = highly resistant the 5 = highly susceptible), and seed germination. Under natural conditions, 34 genotypes suffered moderate levels of grain damage (damage rating (DR) 1.7 to 2.9) compared with a DR of 4.0 to 4.6 in the susceptible controls CSH 1, CSH 5 and CSH 9. IS 17610, IS 17645, IS 21444, IS 19948, IS 25069 and IS 19949 suffered a DR of less than three, and harbored less than 150 bugs/panicle compared with a DR of 4.3 to 4.7, and 248 to 353 bugs/panicle in the susceptible controls CSH 1, CSH 5 and CSH 9 when infested under headcage with 5 pairs of bugs/panicle. IS 18274, IS 20664, IS 20059, IS 25069, and IS 19951 had 150 to 300 bugs/panicle but suffered moderate levels of grain damage (DR less than 3), while the reverse was true in case of IS 8064, IS 19455, IS 19955, IS 20024, IS 20740, IS 23627, IS 2761, and IS 9692. During the 1989 rainy season, IS 14108, IS 17610, IS 17618, IS 17645, IS 19949, IS 19950, IS 19957, IS 20068, IS 25760, IS 27452, IS 27477 and IS 27329 suffered moderate levels of grain damage when infested with 5 and 10 pairs of bugs/panicle, and recorded more than 80% seed germination compared with a DR of 3.9 to 5.0, and seed germination of 15–18% in the susceptible controls CSH 1, CSH 5 and CSH 9. There is a considerable diversity in the genotypes resistant to head bugs, and attempts should be made to transfer the resistance into agronomically acceptable cultivars.