Effects of Sunn Pest (Eurygaster maura L. Heteroptera; Scutelleridae) sucking number on physical and physicochemical characteristics of wheat varieties

In this study, we analysed the effects of Sunn Pest sucking number (0, single and double) on some physical and physicochemical characteristics of wheat varieties. We obtained that sucking number on the kernel had effects on wheat and some varieties (Zenit and Ziyabey-98) are more sensitive than others. Considering six different wheat varieties, for the same wheat variety, two number of sucks caused a decrease in thousand kernel weight of up to 2.8 %, hectoliter weight up to 2.2 %, Zeleny sedimentation test up to 7.1 %, delayed Zeleny sedimentation test up to 37.5 %, dry gluten content up to 8.6 % and gluten index value up to 58.9 % rather than one number of suck. These decrements were statistically significant in 16 of 42 evaluations in seven quality analyses of six different wheat varieties. In addition, Sunn Pest sucking ratio (0 % and 3 %) and Sunn Pest sucking number, cause to decline in the analyses of our findings. This was significant (P < 0.05) in 14, respectively 25 of the total 42 evaluations of Variety×Quality interactions. For these reasons, kernels with double sucking should be considered as two damaged kernel instead of one damaged kernel during classification of the Sunn Pest damaged wheat mass. © 2015 The Author(s)