Survey on stored rice insects in Makassar, Indonesia: A preliminary study

Stored-product insects in rice are threats to the quality and quantity of stored rice. One of the methods to monitor insects in the storage facility is using an ultraviolet (UV) light trap. This study aimed to investigate the species diversity and abundance of insects trapped using UV light traps in the government's stored rice in Makassar City, Indonesia. This study was conducted in a rice storage maintained by the Indonesian Bureau of Logistics (Bulog) Panaikang in early October 2022. Six UV light traps (4 watts) were hung (h=1.8 m) on four sides of a rice pile. Trapped insects were counted and identified. Results showed that the insects trapped by the UV light traps belonged to three orders, i.e., Coleoptera, Lepidoptera, and Hymenoptera. Cryptolestes ferrugineus (Stephens) (Laemophloeidae), Tribolium castaneum (Herbst) (Tenebrionidae), and Rhyzopertha dominica (Fabricius) (Bostrichidae) were three dominant coleopteran species trapped by UV light traps. The diversity was intermediate (H'=1.17), while the dominance (D=0.66) was high, and evenness (E=0.38) was low. Those species are classified as major pests due to their potential to cause economic damage to grains and products.