Determination of sunn pest (eurygaster spp.) density and damage rate in wheat fields in boztepe (Kirşehir) district

This study was conducted to determine the density of Sunn pest (Eurygaster spp.) in wheat fields of Boztepe district, Kırşehir, during the 2024 and 2025 harvesting seasons, as well as to assess the effect of insect density on wheat grain damage rate, protein content, and hectolitre weight. During the pre-harvesting period, surveys of overwintered adult, nymph, and egg of the Sunn pest were carried out in infested fields located in the neighbourhoods and villages of the district. The examinations revealed that the Sunn pest densities in both years remained below the economic threshold level (ETL), although a higher density was observed in 2024 compared to 2025. After harvest, samples were taken from bread wheat delivered to the Turkish Soil Products Office (TMO) in accordance with ISO 24333 standards. The samples prepared according to the TS 2974 Wheat Standard were sieved, damaged grains caused by Sunn pest were separated and weighed, and the percentage of damage in terms of was calculated. In the remaining samples, protein content and hectolitre weight were measured with the help of the Near Infrared Transmission (NIT) method. As a result of the study, the Sunn pest damage rate in samples taken from 3 neighborhoods and 14 villages of the Boztepe district was determined as 0.95% in 2024 and 0.89% in 2025. Protein values ranged between 18% and 11.80%, while hectolitre weights varied between 82.30 and 75.00 kg