Modelling of tea mosquito bug (Helopeltis theivora) incidence on neem tree: A zero inflated count data analysis

Authors

  • S. VISHNU SHANKAR Department of Basic Sciences, Dr. Y. S. Parmar University of Horticulture & Forestry, Solan-173230, Himachal Pradesh, India
  • R. AJAYKUMAR Department of Agronomy, Vanavarayar Institute of Agriculture, Pollachi- 642103, Tamil Nadu, India
  • P. PRABHAKARAN Department of Forestry, Vanavarayar Institute of Agriculture, Pollachi - 642103, Tamil Nadu, India
  • R. KUMARAPERUMAL Department of Remote Sensing and Geographic Information System, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore-641003, Tamil Nadu, India
  • M. GUNA Agro Climate Research Centre, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore- 641003, Tamil Nadu, India

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.54386/jam.v24i4.1891

Keywords:

Count data models, Helopeltis theivora, Statistical models, Weather parameters

Abstract

Neem (Azadirachta indica) is an evergreen tree belonging to the Meliaceae family and is highly infected by the seasonal pest called Helopeltis theivora, the tea mosquito bug. The study monitors the pest infection between May 2019 and April 2021 by the direct counting method. Weekly counts of insect pest population were found to be correlated with weather parameters viz., maximum temperature (Tmax.), minimum temperature (Tmin), relative humidity [morning (07.22hrs) and afternoon (14.22hrs) (RH)], rainfall (mm/day) and wind speed (km/h). Zero inflated count data techniques were opted for modelling the pest dynamics of tea mosquito bug as the data was featured by excess zeroes and heteroscedasticity nature. Poisson, Negative Binomial (NB), zero-inflated Negative Binomial (ZINB) and Negative Binomial Hurdle (NBH) models were fitted for the collected data and compared. The results of different count data models show that the negative binomial hurdle model is a good fit for given data, followed by the zero-inflated negative model. The fitted models show the weather covariates, which highly influencing the pest infestation on neem tree.

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Published

02-12-2022

How to Cite

S. VISHNU SHANKAR, R. AJAYKUMAR, P. PRABHAKARAN, R. KUMARAPERUMAL, & M. GUNA. (2022). Modelling of tea mosquito bug (Helopeltis theivora) incidence on neem tree: A zero inflated count data analysis. Journal of Agrometeorology, 24(4), 409–416. https://doi.org/10.54386/jam.v24i4.1891

Issue

Section

Research Paper

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