Efficacy of rodenticides baiting in rice field of upper Brahmaputra valley zone of Assam

An investigation was carried out at Regional Agricultural Research Station (RARS), Titabor and Instructional-Cum- Research Farm, Assam Agricultural University, Jorhat to evaluate the efficacy of two rodenticides viz., bromadiolone (0.005%) and zinc phosphide (2.0%) under field condition against field rodents in boro and sali rice during 2010–11 and 2011–12, respectively. Among treatments, zinc phosphide (2.0%) baiting at panicle initiation stage followed by bromadiolone (0.005%) as cake 10 days after was found to be most effective in respect of reduction of live burrow (91.70 and 84.47%), trap index (60.22 and 45.23%) and cut tillers (74.91 and 70.18%) in boro and sali rice, respectively. This was followed by bromadiolone (0.005%) as cake at panicle initiation and milky stage which recorded (87.87 and 82.79%) reduction of live burrow, (60.36 and 41.16%) reduction in trap index and (72.87 and 67.43%) reduction in cut tillers in both boro and sali rice, respectively.