Effects of Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi on rice (Oryza sativa) growth, yield performance, and resistance against the rice stink bug (Oebalus pugnax)

One threat to Southern US rice production is the late season insect pest rice stink bug - RSB (Oebalus pugnax), which feeds on rice panicles leading to economic losses. Management strategies against RSB are limited and farmers rely on foliar applications of insecticides. This, over time, can lead to insecticide resistance, increased management costs, and environmental damage. Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) has been observed to confer resistance to both abiotic and biotic stressors, showing potential in pest management. The objective of this study is to evaluate the effects of AMF inoculation on the number of nymphal RSB, grain yield, and peck damage (pecky rice) of rice varieties grown within Texas. A randomized field experiment was conducted in 2025 at Texas A&M AgriLife Research Center in Beaumont. Six rice varieties (Cheniere, CL153, Jupiter, Presidio, PVL03, RT7302) were inoculated and non-inoculated with a commercial liquid AMF formulation. Findings showed, in pairwise comparisons with yield, no significant differences were detected between AMF and non-AMF treatments. Pairwise comparisons using a general linear mixed model with each variety revealed that AMF-Jupiter had significantly less RSB than non-AMF. Results from pecky rice between each treatment will be provided upon presentation but we predict that AMF treatments will have a lesser percentage of pecky rice compared to non-AMF treatments. This study highlights the potential application of AMF within rice production as an additional tool for managing the RSB and further reducing costs resulting from RSB activity.