Fluctuations in Sunn-pest Populations in South-eastern Anatolia

Sunn pest ( Eurygaster integriceps ) is the most serious and widespread pest of cereals in south-eastern Turkey. It is very important to estimate its spring populations, and the area possibly needing to be treated, a few months before they migrate to the fields. The field populations of the pest and the severity of epidemics can be forecast from the population density of overwintering adults per plant in the overwintering localities. To do this, surveys have been made since 1955 on 25 selected mountain sites. Parallel to these investigations, the population of overwintered adults per m2 in cereal fields has been determined in order to fix the area to be treated, since 1956. A relation can be seen between the population density of overwintered adults per plant and the next season's populations in the infested areas.