Insects not as "boring" in Texas rice now

To defeat an enemy, know its lifestyle, where it works and its secret hiding places. That's what researchers have done in a 10-year battle against two insects that bore into grassy crops such as rice, sugarcane, sorghum and corn. "I think we're winning the battle," said Dr. Mo Way, Texas AgriLife Research entomologist in Beaumont. "But it's a continuing battle, so that is why the research is needed." Way and a colleague, Dr. Gene Reagan, professor of entomology at Louisiana State University, joined forces a decade ago -- though the Mexican rice borer was found only partly across the Texas rice belt and not in neighboring Louisiana -- in hopes of getting ahead of the damaging, yield-reducing pest. Full story at http://agrilife.org/today