Pest Photo

South American rice miner

Hydrellia wirthi

South American rice miner (Hydrellia wirthi) is an insect pest of rice. It is a native of Central and South America and was first detected in Louisiana and Texas in 2004.

Injury is caused by the larva or maggot whose feeding causes large, elongated lesions along the margins of emerging leaves. The maggot mines the leaf or rasps the leaf surface before the leaf unfurls. As the leaf expands, yellow damaged areas are more visible.

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