Hobbies And Interests
Boll Weevils
According to the National Cotton Council, boll weevils cost the US cotton industry more than $300 million annually from 1994 on in damages and prevention costs. In 1910, boll weevils ravaged cotton crops in the South, dropping the national cotton yield down 66 percent. Soon thereafter, Alabama farmers implemented the "Boll Weevil Eradication Program" and cotton made a huge comeback. In 1919, Alabama put up a monument to the boll weevil in the town of Enterprise, as a reminder that this one insect helped farmers diversify their farming methods.
Tarnished Plant Bugs
The tarnished plant bug is yet another pest to Alabama cotton farmers. The damage that tarnished plant bugs inflict can occur at any time during the cotton fruiting season with annual losses that can reach up to 50 percent of crop yield potential if little to no preventative measures are implemented. Since tarnished plant bugs' average lifespans are between 3 to 5 weeks, there is enough time for five or six generations to pop up per year.
Southern Green Stink Bugs
The southern green stink bug is believed to be indigenous to Ethiopia. The species' widespread global distribution has brought it to southeastern and mid-west US states, where it brings devastation to Alabama cotton crops. A female southern green stink bug can lay up to 260 eggs over her life span. Like tarnished plant bugs, southern green stink bugs have piercing-sucking mouthparts that cause cotton crops to completely wither and die.
Cotton Fleahoppers
Cotton fleahoppers are small yellow-green insects that are about 1/8 inch long with black specks on the upper portions of their bodies. Their piercing-sucking mouthparts are designed to feed on cotton crops and they do this in the earlier parts of the cotton fruiting season. They live primarily in Texas, but also bring their numbers to Alabama and surrounding Cotton Belt states.