Exactly what will occur in Bt cotton over the next few years is largely unpredictable, but significant change is highly probable. Experiences with Bt cotton in 1996 indicate that traditional scouting techniques need to be adjusted. Some suggestions for modifying scouting techniques follow. The inherent mode of action associated with the Bt technology requires changes in scouting procedures. Bt cotton does not prevent egg deposition by moths nor does it repel this activity.
Susceptible caterpillars hatch, feed for a short time, and eventually die.
As a result, numbers of eggs and newly hatched larvae do not pose a problem. They do continue to indicate the degree of pressure. A modified whole plant search is suggested to detect tobacco budworm, corn earworm, and fall armyworm escapes on Bt cotton. There are already indications that the latter two species are capable of exploiting this technology. The tobacco budworm is not expected to present a problem in the near future, but this technique also will detect tolerant budworm larvae.