SUSCEPTIBILITY OF 31 SPECIES OF AGRICULTURAL INSECT PESTS TO THE ENTOMOGENOUS NEMATODES STEINERNEMA FELTIAE AND HETERORHABDITIS BACTERIOPHORA

1985 ◽  
Vol 117 (4) ◽  
pp. 401-407 ◽  
Author(s):  
O. N. Morris

AbstractThe susceptibility of 31 species of agricultural insect pests representing 7 families of Lepidoptera, 3 of Diptera, and 3 of Coleoptera to the entomogenous nematodes Steinernema feltiae Filipjev and Heterorhabditis bacteriophora Poinar, were investigated in the laboratory. Of the 27 species found susceptible to S. feltiae, 19 are reported for the first time. Of the 21 species killed by H. bacteriophora, 15 are reported for the first time. The Lepidoptera as a group were highly susceptible to the nematodes. On the basis of larval mortality caused by the nematodes, of nematode reproduction in insect cadavers, and of the known economic importance and life histories of the test insects, S. feltiae was judged to warrant further research as a possible biological-control agent against Euxoa ochrogaster (Guenée), E. auxiliaris (Grote), Agrotis orthogonia (Morr.), Actebia fennica (Tauscher), Mamestra configurata Walker, Delia radicum (L.), D. antiqua (Meig.), and Zygogramma exclamationis (F.).

2021 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Indra Kumar Kasi ◽  
Mohinder Singh ◽  
Kanchhi Maya Waiba ◽  
S. Monika ◽  
M. A. Waseem ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Entomopathogenic nematodes (EPNs) have the potential to supersede larvicidal activity for the management of various insect pests. Result Lab experiments were conducted to test the pathogenicity of 2 EPNs local species; Steinernema feltiae and Heterorhabditis bacteriophora at different (IJs/cm2) concentrations against the cabbage butterfly, Pieris brassicae (L.). The native isolate was obtained from soil samples, collected from Rajgarh, Hamachi Pradesh, India. Petri dish bioassay used the EPNs species (S. feltiae HR1 and H. bacteriophora HR2) at the concentrations (0, 10, 20, 40, 80, 160 IJs/cm2). Based on the pathogenicity of the strains, only 2 isolates effectively showed larvicidal activity. The highest (%) (72.08 and 67.42%), at the 2nd instar larval mortality was recorded in the treatments with H. bacteriophora and S. feltiae at160 IJs/cm2, respectively. At the 4th instar larvae, respective larval mortality (85.38, 69.50%) was recorded in treatment with H. bacteriophora, and S. feltiae, respectively, at160 IJs/cm2. In case of pupae, the mortality rates were (62.12, 58.58%) for H. bacteriophora and S. feltiae, respectively, at 160 IJs/cm2; (74 and 12%) for both the tested EPNs, respectively, at 80 IJs/cm2. Percent of P. brassicae larval mortality treated with the tested EPN isolates was significantly higher than the untreated control. Results revealed that the percent of larval mortality significantly increased with the increase in time periods, being maximum at 72 h. S. feltiae and H. bacteriophora, strains showed potent larvicidal activity at low concentration even at 48 and 72 h of exposure. Conclusion This study revealed that the local strains of EPNs (S. feltiae HR1 and H. bacteriophora HR2) were found as a biocontrol agent against P. brassicae.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (9) ◽  
pp. 4066
Author(s):  
Spiridon Mantzoukas ◽  
Ioannis Lagogiannis ◽  
Aristeidis Ntoukas ◽  
George T. Tziros ◽  
Konstantinos Poulas ◽  
...  

Gnomoniopsis castaneae is the cause of the chestnut brown rot but has been also regarded as an important mortality factor for the chestnut gall wasp Dryocosmus kuriphilus. The question to whether G. castaneae could serve as a natural biocontrol agent against insect pests is investigated in the present study. We used three serious insect pests as experimental model insects: Plodia interpuctella and Trogoderma granarium, which are important pests of stored products, and Myzus persicae, a cosmopolitan, serious pest of annual and perennial crop plants. Although chemical pesticides represent effective control means, they are also related to several environmental and health risks. In search for alternative pest management methods, scientific interest has been focused, inter alia, on the use of entomopathogenic fungi. While Isaria fumosorosea has long been recognized as an effective control agent against several pests, G.castaneae has been very little studied. The present study examined whether and to what extent G. castaneae and I. fumosorosea exhibit insecticidal activity against fourth-instar larvae of P. interpunctella and T. granarium and adults of M. persicae. Mortality was examined in interrelation with dosage and time exposure intervals. Both fungi exhibited pesticidal action. However, G. castaneae induced noteworthy mortality only at very high doses. In general, we concluded that G. castaneae failed to cause high insect pathogenicity at normal doses and may not be an efficient biocontrol agent compared with other entomopathogens. On the other hand, our study reiterates the pathogenic potential of I. fumosorosea. More studies are needed to further our insight into the potential of EF species as a component of IPM.


2017 ◽  
Vol 22 (10) ◽  
pp. 1639
Author(s):  
Jhih-Rong Liao ◽  
Chyi-Chen Ho ◽  
Chiun-Cheng Ko

Phytoseiid mites have been intensively surveyed in Taiwan during the past decades because of their potential as biological control agent. Despite the fact, many regions of Taiwan remain under-explored especially in mountain areas and neighboring islands. Typhlodromus (Anthoseius) crossostephium sp. nov. was collected from Crossostephium chinense (L.) Makino (Asteraceae) on rocky shore habitat during a survey on Lanyu Island. In this paper, presence of a phytoseiid mite on rocky shores is reported for the first time. A detailed morphological description of the new species and a key to the Taiwanese species of subgenus Anthoseius are provided.


2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 359
Author(s):  
Jiří Nermuť ◽  
Jana Konopická ◽  
Rostislav Zemek ◽  
Michal Kopačka ◽  
Andrea Bohatá ◽  
...  

Entomopathogenic nematodes and fungi are globally distributed soil organisms that are frequently used as bioagents in biological control and integrated pest management. Many studies have demonstrated that the combination of biocontrol agents can increase their efficacy against target hosts. In our study, we focused on another potential benefit of the synergy of two species of nematodes, Steinernema feltiae and Heterorhabditis bacteriophora, and the fungus Isaria fumosorosea. According to our hypothesis, these nematodes may be able to disseminate this fungus into the environment. To test this hypothesis, we studied fungal dispersal by the nematodes in different arenas, including potato dextrose agar (PDA) plates, sand heaps, sand barriers, and glass tubes filled with soil. The results of our study showed, for the first time, that the spreading of both conidia and blastospores of I. fumosorosea is significantly enhanced by the presence of entomopathogenic nematodes, but the efficacy of dissemination is negatively influenced by the heterogeneity of the testing arena. We also found that H. bacteriophora spread fungi more effectively than S. feltiae. This phenomenon could be explained by the differences in the presence and persistence of second-stage cuticles or by different foraging behavior. Finally, we observed that blastospores are disseminated more effectively than conidia, which might be due to the different adherence of these spores (conidia are hydrophobic, while blastospores are hydrophilic). The obtained results showed that entomopathogenic nematodes (EPNs) can enhance the efficiency of fungal dispersal.


2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 ◽  
pp. 1-4 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claudiney Biral dos Santos ◽  
Marcelo Teixeira Tavares ◽  
Gustavo Rocha Leite ◽  
Adelson Luiz Ferreira ◽  
Leonardo de Souza Rocha ◽  
...  

We report for the first time the parasitism of eggs of two triatomine Chagas disease vectors,Triatoma infestansandT. vitticeps, by the microhymenopterous parasitoidAprostocetus asthenogmus. We also describe the first identification of this parasitoid in South America.A. asthenogmuswere captured near unparasitized triatomine colonies in the municipality of Vitória, state of Espírito Santo, Brazil, and placed into pots with recently laid triatomine eggs. After 24 days, we observed wasps emerging fromT. infestansandT. vitticepseggs. Several characteristics of this parasitoid species suggest that it could be a potential biological control agent of triatomine species.


2011 ◽  
Vol 43 (2) ◽  
pp. 269
Author(s):  
Behzad Habibpour ◽  
Amir Cheraghi ◽  
Mohammad Saeed Mossadegh

This article is the first report on the promising effect of an entomopathogenic fungus, <em>Metarhizium anisopliae</em> (Metschnikoff) Sorokin to control populations of <em>Microcerotermes diversus </em>Silvestri. Biological control is an alternative to the long-term usage of chemical pesticides.<em> M. anisopliae</em>, the causal agent of green muscardine disease of insects, is an important fungus in biological control of insect pests. Bait systems can eliminate entire colonies of subterranean termites. Baiting reduces adverse environmental impacts caused by organochlorine and organophosphate pesticides in the control of termites and creates sustainable protection of buildings against their invasion. Treated-sawdust bait was applied by two methods: a) combination of treated sawdust and untreated filter paper, and b) combination of treated sawdust and untreated sawdust. When combinations of treated sawdust and untreated sawdust were used, LC50 and LC90 were 8.4&times;106 and 3.9&times;107 (spore/ml), respectively. With the use of improved bait formula and more virulent strains, we hope to achieve better control of termite colonies and enable pathogens to become a useful element in the Integrated Pest Management system.


Nematology ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 21 (10) ◽  
pp. 1003-1010
Author(s):  
Muhammad Kamran ◽  
Nazir Javed ◽  
Huma Abbas ◽  
Sajid Aleem Khan ◽  
Ihsan Ullah ◽  
...  

Summary Pasteuria penetrans is a hyperparasite with potential as a biological control agent of root-knot nematodes, Meloidogyne spp. In this study two exotic Pasteuria isolates (PP-3 and PP-J) were developed on different Meloidogyne spp. collected from different districts of Punjab, Pakistan. The development of PP-3 and PP-J on different field populations of Meloidogyne spp. showed differential infectivity in terms of nematode reproduction variables. The development of PP-3 and PP-J was maximum on tomato as compared to cucumber. It was probably due to more invasion sites for nematodes present in the tomato roots. However, a bigger root system has not always been a guarantee for development of Pasteuria on Meloidogyne spp. For successful development of Pasteuria, the key parameters are the percentage of infected females, number of endospores (female)−1 or endospores (mg root powder)−1. The results of these parameters are greater in tomato as compared to cucumber.


1992 ◽  
Vol 40 (2) ◽  
pp. 163 ◽  
Author(s):  
PA Horne

The distributions and life histories of two species of carabid beetles, Notonomus gravis and Notonomus philippi, are compared. N. gravis inhabits the western grassland plains of Victoria and N. philippi inhabits woodland in the Otway Ranges and areas east of Melbourne. Adults of both species show peak activity in summer after emergence, with larval development from autumn to spring. The development of N. philippi occurs approximately one month earlier than that of N. gravis. Both species readily accept larval Lepidoptera as food, are nocturnal and are the dominant carabids in their respective habitats. N. gravis has potential as a biological control agent, and the carabid communities may be used as environmental indicators.


Nematology ◽  
2008 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 701-709 ◽  
Author(s):  
Samuel A. Anbesse ◽  
Bekele J. Adge ◽  
Wondirad M. Gebru

Abstract The barley chafer grub, Coptognathus curtipennis, is an important field pest of barley, wheat and linseed seedlings at Tikur Inchini district of theWest Shewa zone of Ethiopia in Ormoia regional state. Two entomopathogenic nematodes (EPN; Heterorhabditis bacteriophora and Steinernema yirgalemense, strains ANEPN21, ANEPN22, respectively) and three entomopathogenic fungal isolates of Metarhizium anisopliae (MM, EE and PPRC66) were compared separately at different rates of concentration for their effect against C. curtipennis in laboratory bioassays. Heterorhabditis bacteriophora and M. anisopliae isolate MM were found to be the most pathogenic to C. curtipennis at 1000 infective juveniles (IJ)/grub and 108 conidia (g soil)–1 concentration, causing 88.7% and 88.6% mortality, respectively, after 3-4 weeks exposure. These two most effective entomopathogens were further tested against the same insect in simultaneous and sequential combination with each other. Insect larvae were exposed to optimal concentration of H. bacteriophora and M. anisopliae isolate MM, which caused 50% larval mortality, i.e., 380 IJ/grub and 1.7 × 107 conidia (g soil)–1, respectively, as observed in the first experiments. The combined application increased larval mortality in an additive and synergistic manner. To achieve a strong synergistic effect, larva had to be exposed to M. anisopliae isolate MM 3 weeks before the addition of nematodes. The result of the whole experiment suggests that the damage caused by barley chafer grub can be controlled or managed by applying EPN and/or fungi. Furthermore, the combined use of M. anisopliae with nematodes may offer an integrated approach to increase the efficacy of EPN for C. curtipennis control and perhaps other insect pests.


2004 ◽  
Vol 94 (2) ◽  
pp. 159-167 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Jess ◽  
J.F.W. Bingham

AbstractIn small-scale experiments, the predatory mites, Hypoaspis aculeifer (Canestrini) and H. miles Berlese, applied at 700 mites m−2, and the entomopathogenic nematode, Steinernema feltiae (Filipjev) applied at 3 × 10−6 nematodes m−2 controlled sciarids and phorids in mushroom compost and casing substrates. For both mite species, earliest application to the growing substrate following sciarid infestation reduced sciarid emergence. In contrast, later application of each biological control agent provided more effective control of phorid emergence. The behaviour of adult mites suggested that H. aculeifer were more positively geotactic than H. miles although both species could penetrate compost and casing substrates to a depth of 2–12 cm. A majority of S. feltiae nematodes resided at a depth of 2–4 cm in both substrate types. Independent application of H. aculeifer provided more comprehensive control of sciarids and phorids than the other biological agents studied, owing to its better dispersal within compost and casing, and ability to attack larvae of differing ages.


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