Abstract
Cotton is an important fibrous crop and called as white gold of Pakistan. Like many other crops, various chewing and sucking insect pests attack on different Bt and non-Bt cotton genotypes. Furthermore, metrological factors (especially temperature, relative humidity and rainfall) also play vital role in the population dynamics of sucking insect pest complex like jassid, aphid, thrips and mites. The present study was conducted on six cotton cultivars (3 Bt and 3 non-Bt) to monitor the population dynamics of thrips in relation to abiotic climatic factors. Interaction effect was found significant in Bt varieties but not for non-Bt cultivars. Average thrips population per leaf on various Bt and non-Bt varieties showed that the CIM-557 along with BT-703 had the highest number of thrips density while Bt variety FH-113 had the lowest thrips population per leaf. Similarly, in relation to thermal effect, high thrips population was recorded at 29-35 degrees C but population declined at 40 degrees C. Findings are helpful for appropriate management of sucking complex in case of cotton crop.