Atmospheric influences on light-trap catches of the brown planthopper rice pest

The numbers and movements of the brown planthopper(BPH), Nilaparvata lugens, a significant rice pest, result from a mix of environmental factors, one of which is atmospheric conditions. Links between light-trap catches of migrant BPH and meteorological variables were analysed using data from east-central China. Three case studies revealed that distribution of catch was associated with synoptic-scale fronts and meso-scale atmospheric features, such as heavy precipitation and the sea breeze. Combination of analyses of meteorological and insect-catch data with knowledge of BPH behaviour and concentration and deposition mechanisms in the atmosphere, strongly suggested that meso-scale atmospheric structures influenced the distribution of BPH catch. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science B.V.