This is a network for monitoring the vector, which will cover the entire country.
In view of the problem of stunting of corn, caused by the vector Dalbulus maidis (corn leafhopper), a National Monitoring Network with chromatic adhesive traps is being implemented. The purpose of the initiative is to collect data on the evolution of the population and the transmission capacity of the pest in the various corn-producing areas of the country.
The network, promoted by the Argentine Association for Professional Protection of Extensive Crops (Aappce), by the Argentine Association of Direct Sowing Producers (Aapresid), by the Regional Consortiums of Agricultural Experimentation (CREA), by the Obispo Colombres Agroindustrial Experimental Station ( Eeaoc) and by Maizar, its main objective is to generate information on the flight dynamics and infectivity of Dalbulus maidis in different agroecological regions of the country to make it available to the different actors involved in the sector. The project will have an initial duration of three years. The National Institute of Agricultural Technology (INTA) will also collaborate.
The network is made up of three fundamental pillars:
• Network of sentinel traps (main), made up of 450 chromatic adhesive traps distributed in the Argentine Northwest (NOA), the Argentine Northeast (NEA), Central Zone, Core Zone and Coastal Zone. The traps will be monitored by trained technical and professional personnel from the participating institutions under the general coordination of Eeaoc and Maizar.
• Individual infectivity monitoring network: in 45 of the key and representative sites, adult individuals of Dalbulus maidis will be collected sequentially and seasonally to analyze by molecular technique (PCR) the presence and national distribution of the main pathogens of the stunt complex of corn to understand the seasonal infectious fluctuation of the different agroecological zones.
• Voluntary trap network, open to the participation of any person, institution or organization that wishes to collaborate with monitoring. Volunteers must complete a training course, have approved sticky traps and register their data on an online platform, with prior authorization from the coordinators.
