Simulating Insect Injury with Emphasis on Stink Bugs

Because true bugs continue to pose a challenge to current and future efforts concerning cotton insect management, we must continue to investigate the potential for yield loss under various circumstances. Excessive terminal and fruit losses from insects, specifically the bug complex (stink bugs or plant bugs), in earlysquaring cotton can result in significant loss of canopy structure and yield. Although it is widely documented that plant bugs can and will injure squares and terminal growth, it is unclear if stink bugs injure meristematic tissue and pre-floral buds. Stink bugs are primarily fruit/seed feeders, but their potential capacity to injure terminal growth and squares should caution growers when elevated populations are encountered in young cotton.