RELATIVE ABUNDANCE OF INSECTS ON BERMUDA-GRASSES AND BAHIA-GRASSES

Populations of leafhoppers, planthoppers, Trigonotylus doddi (Distant) (Hemiptera: Miridae), and predators were monitored on bermudagrass (C ynodon spp.) cultivars 'Coastal', 'Tifton 44', 'Tifton 78', and 'Tifto n 85', and bahiagrass (Paspalum notatum Flugge) 'Tifton 9'; bahiagrass varieties 'Pensacola,' 'Argentine', and 'Sand Mountain'; and bahiagra ss breeding lines 'Tifton 4', 'Tifton 5', 'Tifton 7', and 'Tifton 14' during 1991 and 1992. Insects were more abundant on bermudagrasses tha n on bahiagrasses. Significant differences in insect abundance also we re noted among bermudagrasses, but not among bahiagrasses. Populations of certain leafhoppers and planthoppers were higher on 'Tifton 44' th an on 'Coastal', while populations of leafhoppers, planthoppers, and T . doddi were lower on 'Tifton 78', and 'Tifton 85' than on 'Coastal.' In both years, the number of predators collected on the grasses was co rrelated with the number of planthoppers and with the total number of phytophagous insects.