The larvae of several insect species, primarily belonging to the orders Coleoptera, Lepidoptera, Diptera, and Hemiptera, as well as Orthoptera adults, are persistent pearl millet pests in the Sahel.[3][4][5] The following pest species are reported for northern Mali.[6][7]
Coniesta ignefusalis (pearl millet stem-borer; Lepidoptera, Crambidae) attacks pearl millet, and also sorghum and maize, especially in the Sahel. It is the main pearl millet pest in Senegal.
Heliocheilus albipunctella (pearl millet head-miner; Lepidoptera, Noctuidae) attacks pearl millet. The larvae bore in a spiral path, destroying florets or grain.
Geromyia penniseti (millet grain midge): The larvae eat the developing grain and form white pupal cases attached to the tips of spikelets. Reported losses in Senegal are as high as 90 percent.
Rhinyptia infuscata (Scarabaeidae, Rutelinae, Anomalini) is a nocturnal beetle, recorded as a locally important pest on millet flowers in Niger. Farmers in Niger often fight the species using fires set at night. It is also reported as sorghum pest in Senegal, and as a pest on maize, where the larvae attack the roots.
^Kalaisekar, A (2017). Insect pests of millets: systematics, bionomics, and management. London: Elsevier. ISBN978-0-12-804243-4. OCLC967265246.
^Meagher, R.L., Reed, C., Mills, R.B. 1982. Development of Sitophilus zeamais and Tribolium castaneum in whole, cracked, and ground pearl millet. Journal of the Kansas Entomological Society, 55(1): 91–94.
^Jago, N. D. 1993. Millet pests of the Sahel: biology, monitoring and control. Chatham UK: Natural Resources Institute. 66 pp. ISBN0-85954-349-8.
^Matthews, M. and N. D. Jago. 1993. Millet pests of the Sahel: an identification guide. Chatham UK: Natural Resources Institute. (80 p.) ISBN0-85954-331-5.
^Ruparao T. Gahukar, Gadi V. P. Reddy. Management of Economically Important Insect Pests of Millet. Journal of Integrated Pest Management (2019) 10(1): 28; 1–10 https://doi.org/10.1093/jipm/pmz026
^Bekoye, B. M., and A. Dadie. 2015. Evaluation des pertes en grains de mil dues aux insectes. Eur. Sci. J. 11: 266–275.
^Tanzubil, Paul B. & Emmanuel A. Yakubu (1997). Insect pests of millet in Northern Ghana. 1. Farmers' perceptions and damage potential. International Journal of Pest Management, 43:2, 133-136. doi:10.1080/096708797228825
^Lale, N. E. S., and B. M. Sastawa. 2000. Evaluation of host plant resistance, sowing date modification and intercropping as methods for the control of Mylabris and Coryna species (Coleoptera: Meloidae) infesting pearl millet in the Nigerian Sudan savanna. J. Arid Environ. 46: 263–280.
^Natarajan, V. S., V. D. G. Raja, and S. Anavardham. 1973. Extent of damage caused by shoot fly (Atherigona approximate) on bajra hybrid. Madras Agric. J. 60: 584–585.
^Buntin, G. D., X. Ni, and J. P. Wilson. 2007. Chinch bug control in pearl millet for grain production. Arthropod. Manag. Tests 32: F41.
^Ni, X., J. P. Wilson, J. A. Rajewski, G. D. Buntin, and I. Dweikat. 2007. Field screening of pearl millet for chinch bug (Heteroptera: Blissidae) resistance. J. Entomol. Sci. 42: 467–480.
^Rajewski, J. A., X. Ni, J. P. Wilson, and I. Dweikat. 2009. Evaluation of resistance to chinch bug in pearl millet in temperate and subtropical environments.
^Starks, K. J., A. J. Cassady, O. G. Merkle, and D. Boozaya-Angoon. 1982. Chinch bug resistance in pearl millet. J. Econ. Entomol. 75: 337–339.
^Wilson, J. P., B. Ouendeba, and W. W. Hanna. 2008. Diallel analysis of chinch bug damage to pearl millet. International Sorghum Millets Newsletter 41: 78–79.