Field library

Rice Bug

A slim green-brown bug with long legs that gives off a strong bad smell. While the grain is still soft and milky it pushes its beak in and sucks the milk out. Those grains stay empty or shrivel with a black mark, and the rice smells and mills badly.

How to scout

Go into the field early morning or late evening when the grain is in the milk stage — the smell tells you first — then count the bugs on ten panicles at several spots.