A Review of Host Plant Preferences of Pentatomid Pests from West Bengal

Pentatomid bugs are a group of insects which feed on host plants. They are known to be piercing-sucking type pests of crops in India. In this study we have mainly tried to record Pentatomid pests from West Bengal along with their distribution throughout the state and their interactions with host plant species. The plant family Poaceae is infested by the highest number of Pentatomid pests. There are eleven plant families which are infested by pentatomid species. Among the reported pests of pentatomids viz., Dolycoris indicus Stal and Nezara viridula (Linnaeus) feed on plant species belonging to seven families followed by Bagrada hilaris (Burmeister) which consumes plant species of six families. Pentatomid bugs like Dolycoris baccarum, Eysarcoris ventralis Westwood, Menida versicolor (Gmelin) and Stenozygum speciosum (Dallas) are reported to attack plants from two families.