An unwanted guest to the North Okanagan has been spotted.
Adult western rootworms, which are beetles, have migrated to the North Okanagan and Shuswap regions for the first time, and are causing damage to corn crops.
“It is not a good thing,” said Susanna Acheampong, an entomologist with B.C.’s Ministry of Agriculture and Food.
“I was hoping they would not make their way here, but they showed up this year. We are monitoring the situation.”
The beetle has affected corn crop production in Salmon Arm, Enderby, and Armstrong, having previously been spotted in the Fraser Valley in 2016.
“The beetles cause a lot of damage to the fill of the corn,” said Acheampong, “but rootworm larvae do the most damage by feeding on corn roots, compromising plant growth and stability.”
Rootworm species were first noticed in the United States in 1950 and are estimated to cause more than $1 billion in losses there every year.
Crop rotation and the planting of insect-resistant hybrid corn are two ways that farmers fend off the beetle.
“We are going to follow up next year and do an extensive study to see how widespread they are,” said Acheampong.
Farmers who believe the beetles may be affecting their region are asked to contact susanna.acheampong@gov.bc.ca.