Monitoring of fall armyworm infestation status and current attack on maize plants in southern Egypt

Spodoptera frugiperda is the scientific name for the fall armyworm (Family: Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) and its infestation of maize is becoming a major issue that may endanger Egypt's corn yields in the future. It is a severe crop pest that exists worldwide. In the Luxor Governorate in southern Egypt, we monitored the status of S. frugiperda infestation and current attack on maize plants. From the third week of June until the time of harvest, S. frugiperda larvae were observed on maize plants, indicating the beginning of the invasion and attack of the plants. This occurred at the age of 14 days following sowing. In 2022 and 2023, respectively, three peaks were noted in each season in terms of the number of larvae, number of plants infested with larvae, percentage of infestation, and percentage of attack intensity. These peaks occurred 29, 57 and 85 days after sowing. According to our analysis, throughout the season, there were more plants attacked than healthy ones. Therefore, the percentage of plants attacked by S. frugiperda increased as the timing of corn plant inspections increased during the two seasons. Farmers and decision-makers may find these results useful in creating efficient plans to manage this pest.