Michael Hilary Otim

National Agricultural Research Organization | NARO · Cereals and Legumes Research Programs

Spodoptera frugiperda (J.E. Smith), fall armyworm ( FAW ), a polyphagous Noctuid pest, was first reported in Uganda in 2016. Farmers were trained to identify and manage the pest, but there was a lack of information on farmer knowledge, perceptions and practices deployed to control it. Therefore, we conducted a survey to assess maize farmers’ knowle...

We investigated the varieties of beans traded in five districts of Uganda and the factors affecting the quality and price of the beans at the market node. A semi-linear hedonic price model with 12 variables categorized as product and trader attributes was used to determine the factors influencing prices. Traders were found to be unmindful of the na...

Capturing the phenological responses of crops in diverse, small-scale agricultural systems is one of the most notable remote sensing research gaps in Eastern Africa. Because of the heterogeneous and complex agricultural environments, remote sensing methodologies successfully implemented elsewhere yield poor results in Eastern Africa. The reliance o...

Spodoptera frugiperda (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), commonly known as fall armyworm, was first detected in Uganda in 2016 and has spread to all the maize-growing districts. Different methods have been deployed to control this pest. However, there is a limited understanding of the role of the environment and farmers’ practices on the abundance of and da...

Spodoptera frugiperda (fall armyworm, FAW) is a significant economic pest of maize in Uganda. Many Ugandan maize farmers employ synthetic insecticides as their main form of control despite the negative impacts of these chemicals. We tested the effectiveness of Beauveria bassiana; General Biopesticide Cocktail (mixture of B. bassiana, M. anisopliae,...

Spodoptera frugiperda (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) commonly known as fall armyworm was first detected in Uganda in 2016 and has spread to all the maize-growing districts. Different methods have been deployed to control this pest. However, there is a limited understanding of the role of the environment and farmers' practices on the incidence and damage...

Spodoptera frugiperda is a significant economic pest of maize in Uganda. Many Ugandan maize farmers employ synthetic insecticides as their main form of control despite the negative impacts of these chemicals. The study aimed to determine the effect of synthetic, semi-synthetic and bio-pesticides on maize leaf damage, and abundance of S, frugiperda...

This paper is about the profitability of different storage and drying technologies at farmer level in Uganda, (East Africa) Key words: Postharvest loss, technologies, profitability, storage

Simple Summary Mythimna loreyi Duponchel (Noctuidae) is reported on several gramineous hosts worldwide. It attacks particularly maize and reduces yields significantly. It is a native species in East Asia and found in the Near and Middle East, Australia and Africa. Recently, this insect emerged in Tunisia. It was detected abundantly during surveys c...

In Uganda, the common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) is often infested by a complex of insect pests, but the bean stem maggots, aphids, bean leaf beetles, and flower thrips are the most important. Whereas yield losses due to these pests have been established, there is limited information on their population dynamics at different stages of crop growth an...

Background Investing in postharvest technologies is one way of reducing food losses with the aim of achieving food security, but it is often overlooked. In this study, we assessed the losses and costs associated with the harvest and postharvest practices used by smallholder bean farmers in Uganda. We also estimated the grain Moisture Content (MC) a...

Abstract Background The Fall armyworm (FAW) Spodoptera frugiperda (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) is now established across the African continent and is a highly polyphagous and destructive pest of many crops. In Uganda, FAW has become the major maize pest, causing heavy damage especially on shoots and growing points. The objectives of this study were to:...

Bean leaf beetles (BLBs) (Ootheca spp.) are important field insect pests of the common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) in agricultural communities in Sub-Saharan Africa. A survey of 128 farmers was conducted in Arua, Hoima, Lira, and Lwengo districts in Uganda, where the common bean is a major food and income crop. This paper evaluated farmers’ knowle...

Background The fall armyworm (FAW), Spodoptera frugiperda; J.E. Smith (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), is now an economically important pest that causes huge losses to maize productivity in sub-Saharan Africa. Variations in sub-population genetics and the processes of rapid adaptation underpinning the invasion remain unclear. For this, the genetic identit...

The fall armyworm (FAW) Spodoptera frugiperda is thought to have undergone a rapid ‘west-to-east’ spread since 2016 when it was first identified in western Africa. Between 2018 and 2020, it was recorded from South Asia (SA), Southeast Asia (SEA), East Asia (EA), and Pacific/Australia (PA). Population genomic analyses enabled the understanding of pa...

Sorghum is one of the most important cereal crops grown in arid/semi-arid regions of the world. Understanding and utilising the genetic variation in sorghum accessions is essential for improving the crop to adapt to abiotic and biotic constraints. Several authors have reported the loss of sorghum diversity, but there is limited available informatio...

Encarsia sophia Girault and Dodd and Eretmocerus mundus Mercet (Hymenoptera: Aphelinidae) are important biological control agents of Bemisia tabaci Gennadius (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) because of their outstanding parasitic and destructive host-feeding ability. This study evaluated their parasitism and host-feeding capacity at five B. tabaci SSA1 hos...

Striga is a major constraint to cereal production in the tropics, particularly on soils of low fertility. Striga causes 30 to 80% cereal crop losses in sub-Saharan Africa. The objective of this study was to assess farmers’ perception of level of infestation and efficacy of current management options of Striga (Striga hermonthica (Delile) Benth) in...

Bean leaf beetles (BLBs) (Ootheca spp.) are serious legume pests in Uganda and sub-Saharan Africa, but their ecology is not well understood. We planted host plants, viz., common bean, cowpea, and soybean, in an experiment in the hotspot areas of Arua and Lira districts in Northern Uganda in order to assess their influence on the density of adults a...

Sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench) is a food security crop in sub-Saharan Africa, which requires constant breeding in response to changes in the fragility of agricultural production environments. Hence, understanding and tenacious use of genetic variation in sorghum germplasm is essential for improving the crop to cope with environmental changes...

Simple Summary: Bean leaf beetles (Ootheca spp.) (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) are a major pest of the common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) in Africa, attacking the roots, leaves, floral parts, and young pods, and reducing grain yields significantly. However, there is no comprehensive program for managing bean leaf beetles. In Uganda, farmers typicall...

The Bemisia tabaci complex is currently recognised as key agricultural pests that cause economic damage globally. Temperature is the most important driver of changes in behaviour, abundance and distribution of insect pests, including the whitefly (Bemisia tabaci). The objective of this study was to evaluate the development, fecundity and reproducti...

Bean leaf beetle (BLB) (Ootheca mutabilis) has emerged as an important bean pest in Uganda, leading to devastating crop losses. There is limited information on the population genetic structure of BLB despite its importance. In this study, novel microsatellite DNA markers and the partial mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase subunit I (mtCOI) gene sequen...

The fall armyworm (FAW) Spodoptera frugiperda is thought to have undergone a rapid ′west-to-east′ spread since 2016 when it was first identified in western Africa. Between 2018 and 2020, it was also recorded from South Asia (SA), Southeast Asia (SEA), East Asia (EA), and Pacific/Australia (PA). Population genomic analyses enables the understanding...

Rice Yellow Mottle Virus (RYMV) disease is endemic to Africa where it affects rice production. Host plant resistance would form a cost effective and sustainable option for managing the disease. However, there is still lack of knowledge on the reaction of rice germplasm and the genetic basis of their resistance/susceptibility to RYMV coupled with la...

Cassava whitefly are a group of cryptic species within the Bemisia tabaci sensu lato complex that causes significant damage to cassava in Africa. B. tabaci Sub-Saharan Africa 1 (SSA1) is the major species in the study region which transmits plant-virus diseases to cassava and causes direct feeding damage. Benefits from management of cassava viral d...

Native to the Americas, the invasive Spodoptera frugiperda (fall armyworm; FAW) was reported in West Africa in 2016, followed by its chronological detection across the Old World and the hypothesis of an eastward Asia expansion. We explored population genomic signatures of American and Old World FAW and identified 12 maternal mitochondrial DNA genom...

leaf beetle (BLB) (Ootheca mutabilis) has emerged as an important bean pest in Uganda, leading to devastating crop losses. There is limited information on the population genetic structure of BLB despite their importance. In this study, novel microsatellite markers and the partial mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase subunit I (mtCOI) gene sequences wer...

Stem borers are major insect pests of maize in Uganda. A study was conducted in 2014–2016 to assess the performance of transgenic Bt hybrids expressing Cry1B (event MON810) against the two major stem borer species in Uganda – the African stem borer (Busseola fusca) and the spotted stem borer (Chilo partellus) – under artificial infestation. The stu...

Bean leaf beetles (Ootheca spp.) (Insecta: Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) are one of Africa's most destructive pests of common bean and other leguminous crops. The beetles are widely distributed in Africa where they are estimated to cause annual crop yield losses of 116,400 tons of crop yields in sub-Saharan Africa. Despite their importance, little is...

High populations of species in the whitefly complex Bemisia tabaci Gennadius (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) were reported to cause severe damage to cassava in East and Central Africa. However, reasons for B. tabaci population increases are not well understood. We investigated the effect of cassava morphological traits, temperature, rainfall and relative...

Natural death is a key determinant of a species population dynamics. Thus, a clear understanding of natural mortality factors aids the development of appropriate management strategies for insect pests. Cohort-based life tables were constructed to determine the sources and rates of mortality of field populations of the pest, Bemisia tabaci Sub-Sahar...

The fall armyworm (FAW), Spodoptera frugiperda; J.E. Smith (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), has become a newly established economically important pest that causes huge losses to maize productivity in sub-Saharan Africa. In 2017, a survey was conducted to collect S. frugiperda specimens across 11 agro-ecological zones in Uganda. Cytochrome oxidase subunits...

The fall armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda J.E Smith) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) invaded Africa in 2016, and has since spread to all countries in sub-Saharan Africa, causing devastating effects on mainly maize and sorghum. The rapid spread of this pest is aided by its high reproductive rate, high migration ability, wide host range and adaptability to d...

The fall armyworm (FAW) Spodoptera frugiperda (J.E. Smith) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) has successfully invaded Africa, where it has significantly impacted maize and sorghum production. Management of FAW in Africa predominantly relies on synthetic insecticides, which are expensive, and negatively impact the environment and beneficial insects. We, ther...

Smallholder maize farmers in Africa experience pre-and post-harvest production stresses either individually or in combination at different stages of the crop cycle. The maize weevil is among the major post-harvest storage pests. A strategy to address this problem is to develop and promote high yielding maize germplasm with resistance to multiple st...

Smallholder maize farmers in Africa experience pre-and post-harvest production stresses either individually or in combination at different stages of the crop cycle. The maize weevil is among the major post-harvest storage pests. A strategy to address this problem is to develop and promote high yielding maize germplasm with resistance to multiple st...

Context African production landscapes are diverse, with multiple cassava cultivars grown in small patches amongst a diversity of other crops. Studies on how diverse smallholder landscapes impact herbivore pest outbreak risk have not been carried out in sub-Saharan Africa. Objectives Bemisia tabaci is a cryptic pest species complex that cause damag...

Genomic selection (GS) can accelerate variety improvement when training set (TS) size and its relationship with the breeding set (BS) are optimized for prediction accuracies (PAs) of genomic prediction (GP) models. Sixteen GP algorithms were run on phenotypic best linear unbiased predictors (BLUPs) and estimators (BLUEs) of resistance to both fall...

Rice in the recent past has picked up as a food security and income generating crop among farming households in Uganda. Even though, the crop is playing a significant role in reducing food insecurity and poverty within the country, its productivity has remained constant and low at about 1.5 metric tonnes per hectare. Using cross-sectional data coll...

Genomic selection (GS) can accelerate variety improvement when training set (TS) size, and its relationship with the breeding set (BS) are optimized for prediction accuracies (PA) of genomic prediction (GP) models. Sixteen GP algorithms were run on phenotypic best linear unbiased predictors (BLUPs) and estimators (BLUEs) of resistance to both fall...

Genomic selection (GS) can accelerate variety release by shortening the variety development phase when factors that influence prediction accuracies (PA) of genomic prediction (GP) models such as training set (TS) size and relationship with the breeding set (BS) are optimized beforehand. In this study, PAs for the resistance to fall armyworm (FAW) a...

Genomic selection (GS) can accelerate variety release by shortening variety development phase when factors that influence prediction accuracies (PA) of genomic prediction (GP) models such as training set (TS) size and relationship with the breeding set (BS) are optimized beforehand. In this study, PAs for the resistance to fall armyworm (FAW) and m...

Several species of herbivores feed on maize in field and storage setups, making the development of multiple insect resistance a critical breeding target. In this study, an association mapping panel of 341 tropical maize lines was evaluated in three field environments for resistance to fall armyworm (FAW), whilst bulked grains were subjected to a ma...

Storability of maize grain is constrained by the larger grain borer (LGB) (Prostephanus truncatus). Host plant resistance is the most feasible way to manage LGB among smallholder farmers. Breeding for resistance to this pest in maize is dependent on understanding genetic mechanisms underlying the resistance. The objective of this study was to map q...

Accurate genomic knowledge can elucidate the global spread patterns of invasive pests. The high-profile invasive agricultural pest Spodoptera frugiperda (fall armyworm; FAW) is a case in point. Native to the Americas, the FAW was first reported in West Africa in 2016 and has rapidly spread to over 64 countries across the Old World, resulting in sig...

The fall armyworm, Spodoptera frugiperda , is a major pest native to the Americas that has recently invaded the Old World. Point mutations in the target‐site proteins acetylcholinesterase‐1 (ace‐1), voltage‐gated sodium channel (VGSC) and ryanodine receptor (RyR) have been identified in S. frugiperda as major resistance mechanisms to organophosphat...

Several herbivores feed on maize in field and storage setups making the development of multiple-insect resistance a critical breeding target. In this study, an association mapping panel of 341 tropical maize lines was evaluated in three field environments for resistance to FAW (fall armyworm) whilst bulked grains were subjected to MW (maize weevil)...

Several herbivores feed on maize in field and storage setups making the development of multiple-insect resistance a critical breeding target. In this study, an association mapping panel of 341 tropical maize lines was evaluated in three field environments for resistance to FAW whilst bulked grains were subjected to MW bioassay, genotyped with Diver...

The recent isolation of an atoxigenic strain of Aspergillus flavus (Link) (Eurotiales: Trichocomaceae), which was virulent to all stages of Xylosandrus compactus (Eichhoff) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) has generated interest to investigate virulence of the entomopathogenic fungus against other crop pests, and how it compares with established commerc...

Fonte de grande preocupação na área fitossanitária, a movimentação de pragas de um continente a outro é uma realidade cada vez mais presente. Em relação à Spodoptera frugiperda, a atenção precisa ser redobrada diante do potencial destrutivo dessa lagartas. De identificação recente na Nigéria e em muitos países africanos e asiáticos, este inseto enc...

Insect pests are primary constraints in maize (Zea mays) production in many places in sub-Saharan Africa. Stem borers and storage pests are responsible for severe yield losses and health hazards due to mycotoxin contamination. Integrated pest management (IPM) strategies have moved from control methods and transgenic resistance to recognizing the ne...

The original version of this article was revised because it should have been published with open access which it is at present.

This study isolated and evaluated virulence of fungal entomopathogens of Xylosandrus compactus–an important pest of Robusta coffee in Sub‐Saharan Africa. A survey was conducted in five farming systems in Uganda to isolate entomopathogens associated with X. compactus. Four fungal isolates were screened for virulence against X. compactus in the labor...

Combinatorial insect attacks on maize leaves, stems, and kernels cause significant yield losses and mycotoxin contaminations. Several small effect quantitative trait loci (QTL) control maize resistance to stem borers and storage pests and are correlated with secondary metabolites. However, efficient use of QTL in molecular breeding requires a synth...

Drought is a devastating environmental stress in agriculture and hence a common target of plant breeding. A review of breeding progress on drought tolerance shows that, to a certain extent, selection for high yield in stress-free conditions indirectly improves yield in water-limiting conditions. The objectives of this study were to (i) assess the g...

The fall armyworm (FAW) Spodoptera frugiperda (J. E. Smith) is a species native to the Americas. This polyphagous lepidopteran pest was first reported in Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of São Tomé and Principe in 2016, but its presence in eastern Africa has not been confirmed via molecular characterisation. In this study, FAW specimens from we...

Majority-rule consensus nucleotide polymorphisms detected in Ugandan Spodoptera frugiperda specimens at three partial mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) gene regions. A total of 11, 13 and eight single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were detected in COI, COIII and Cyt b genes, respectively. Note that nucleotide position 243 for the COIII gene differentiate...

Spodoptera frugiperda sample ID, sampling dates, sampling districts, location coordinates and life stages used in this study. All samples were collected from maize host plant. All samples were collected as larvae except individuals 11A, 12A, 14A, 15A, and 18A which were collected as adult moths. Western districts are: Buliisa, Kabarole, Kamwenge, K...

Publicly available partial mtDNA COI gene sequences as compared to the two Ugandan Spodoptera frugiperda mtDNA COI haplotypes (in yellow highlight). All polymorphisms are as compared to the sequence with the GenBank accession number MF197867. Nucleotide positions are based on the MF197867 haplotype. Previously detected African haplotypes from Niger...

Estimates of uncorrected nucleotide distances (p-dist) between Spodoptera frugiperda 36 partial mtDNA COI sequences as obtained from GenBank (accessed 20-May-2017). These 36 randomly selected mtDNA COI partial gene sequences can be broadly divided into either that of 'rice-preferred' (samples 1–18) or 'corn-preferred' (samples 19–37) sister-species...

Bemisia tabaci (Gennadius) (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) is a pest species complex that causes widespread damage to cassava, a staple food crop for millions of households in East Africa. Species in the complex cause direct feeding damage to cassava and are the vectors of multiple plant viruses. Whilst significant work has gone into developing virus-resi...

Germplasm of common beans from the Mesoamerican gene pool races: Durango, Jalisco, Mesoamerica and Guatemala have highest genetic variation for the crop's improvement. The objective was to assign 50 common bean germplasm in Uganda into its gene pool races based on analyses of population structure. Secondly, to estimate heritability and effects of g...

Stalk-eyed flies (D. longicornis and D. apicalis) are pests of economic importance on rice. Of the two species of stalk- eyed fly, D. longicornis is the most prevalent and destructive. To determine the mode of inheritance for resistance to the stalk-eyed fly in rice in Uganda, crosses were made among eight parental lines (NERICA4, TXD306, K85, NM7-...

The bean bruchids, Acanthoscelides obtectus Say and Zabrotes subfasciatus Boheman (Coleoptera: Bruchidae), are cosmopolitan pests of stored dry common beans (Phaseolus vulgaris L.), causing damage through reduction of grain quality and seed germination. Biological resistance to these bruchids was definitively established in noncultivated bean acces...

Rice is a new crop in Uganda, but has quickly grown in importance. Between 2000 and 2010, total area under rice cultivation in the country grew by 94% from 140,000 ha. Changes in the agro ecosystem due to expansion in rice area may have altered the pest status of rice insect pests. However, far too little attention has been paid to assessing the pr...

Brief details about the current research on Aspergillus flavus

Globally, rice production is limited by abiotic and biotic factors. Of the insect pests attacking rice, the stalk-eyed fly is the most abundant. Major rice growing districts in Uganda are affected, and varieties grown by farmers are susceptible. The objective of this study was to identify sources of resistance to stalk-eyed flies among improved ric...

The lowland rice genotypes grown in Uganda were introduced in the 1970s. These genotypes (now landraces) are threatened by multiple biotic stresses namely; Rice Yellow Mottle Virus (RYMV) disease, Bacterial Leaf Streak(BLS). Bacterial Leaf Blight (BLB), and Rice Blast (BL). There are currently no rice lines with multiple resistance to these stresse...

The common dry bean is the main source of protein, food and income for the majority of rural smallholder farmers in Uganda especially the women and children, and any constraints hindering its production directly affects these vulnerable groups. Despite its importance, there has been an unmerited decline in bean production over the last few decades...

In vivo production of maternal haploid plants and advancement in chromosome doubling technology has led to rapid production of doubled haploid homozygous lines. These in turn have boosted rapid advancement in most breeding programs. This has resulted in production of a large number of maize hybrids which need testing across production environments...

The bean fly (Ophiomyia spp.) is considered the most economically damaging field insect pest of common beans in Uganda. Despite the use of existing pest management approaches, reported damage has remained high. Forty-eight traditional and improved common bean varieties currently grown in farmers’ fields were evaluated for resistance against bean fl...

Napier grass stunt disease (NGSD) is the main biotic factor limiting Napier grass production in the East African reg ion. Its management is, however, hampered by inadequate epidemiological information. This study determined the temporal spread of NGSD in Napier grass fields. A field experiment was setup at National Crops Resources Research Institut...

We investigated the occurrence of insect pests and natural enemies on rice plants and weeds around rice fields in Uganda, East Africa, during 2010 and 2013. The following pest arthropods were collected with an insect net: large-sized stalk-eyed fly (Diopsis longicornis), small-sized stalk-eyed fly (D. apicalis), plant bugs (Pentatomidae and Alydida...