A WebGIS Expert System for Rice Brown Planthopper Disaster Early-Warning in China's Shanghai

The brown planthopper (BPH) Nilaparvata lugens (Stal) is one of the most devastating insect pests in rice planting region of China's Shanghai. The incidence and distribution of this pest in both tropical and temperate regions are significantly influenced by climate conditions. The BPH feeds mainly on the stems, sucks assimilates from the phloem and results in drying of the leaves and wilting of the tillers. As a result, it is important to develop decision aids that help evaluate the disasters of this pest to Shanghai rice planting regions. Expert systems are a type of decision aid that could be applied to the domain of disaster evaluation and disaster early-warning. An interactive WebGIS expert system for BPH disaster early-warning in this context was developed from rice varieties' susceptibility, pest density and climatic factors in Shanghai rice planting region. The system used a straightforward set of if-then rules to classify disaster. The parameters, related to BPH outbreak, of Shanghai rice planting region from Client were selected to the interactive WebGIS, and the early-warning results and control measures of the disaster were shown in Client-end WebGIS browser from Server to Client. The development of WebGIS expert system for BPH disaster early-warning in China's Shanghai presented significant challenges to maintaining Client-user processing convenience and applying advantage.