Horizontal transmission of Metarhizium anisopliae between Spoladea recurvalis (Lepidoptera: Crambidae) adults and compatibility of the fungus with the attractant phenylacetaldehyde

Published online: 10 April 2019The compatibility of the entomopathogenic fungus Metarhizium anisopliae ICIPE 30 which was proved to be pathogenic to adult Spoladea recurvalis, and phenylacetaldehyde (PAA) floral attractant for lepidopteran moths, was investigated under laboratory and field conditions through spatial and temporal separations. Horizontal transmission of M. anisopliae ICIPE 30 between adult S. recurvalis and the number of conidia picked up by a single moth from the autoinoculation device were also determined under laboratory tests. When freshly emerged moths were inoculated with fungal conidia (“donors”) and maintained together with an equal number of untreated freshly emerged moths (“recipients”) in the laboratory, they were able to transmit infection to untreated moths resulting to 76.9% mortality with an LT50 value of 6.9 days. The quantity of conidia a moth could acquire and retain from the autoinoculation device in the laboratory was assessed at 0, 24, 48, and 72 h post-inoculation. The overall mean number of conidia acquired by a single moth was significantly higher immediately after exposure (0 h) (14.3 ± 2.5 × 105) than at 24, 48, and 72 h after inoculation (F = 10.26, Df = 3,8, P = 0.003), though a single moth still retained 4.6 ± 0.9 × 105 conidia 72 h post inoculation. Laboratory results showed that PAA completely inhibited the germination of the conidia 8 days post exposure, while the conidial viability was not affected in the control treatment without PAA. Under field conditions, the inhibitory effects of PAA on conidial germination was minimized by placing it at a distance of 5–10 cm from M. anisopliae isolate ICIPE 30 conidia. There was no significant difference in conidial germination in the control treatment and in treatments where PAA was placed at 5 cm and 10 cm away from M. anisopliae isolate ICIPE 30. Conidial germination was low in the autoinoculation device that had PAA directly exposed to the fungus. PAA is therefore compatible with M. anisopliae ICIPE 30 for use in integrated management of S. recurvalis, if spatially separated 5 cm away from the fungus and could thus be combined in an autocontamination devices for the control of S. recurvalis

Chemical additives enhance the activity of a Bt‐based biopesticide targeting the beet webworm larvae

Spoladea recurvalis (Fbr.) (Lepidoptera: Crambidae) larvae can cause up to 100% foliage loss on amaranths during severe outbreaks. The Bacillus thuringiensis Subsp. kurstaki product Halt® is a biologically safe biopesticide recommended for the management of Spodoptera exigua (Hübner) and Plutella xylostella (Linnaeus). Spoladea recurvalis larvae are less susceptible to the product. Thirteen chemical additives to improve the efficacy of a Bt spray for control of S. recurvalis were evaluated in laboratory bioassays against second‐instar larvae. All the additives except calcium chloride caused an increase in mortality when applied in mixtures with Bt. Among the seven inorganic salts, boric acid was the only inorganic acid that caused more than 50% larval mortality. Boric acid at a concentration of 0.05% increased the activity of B. thuringiensis by 2.9‐fold. Boric acid had the shortest LT50 values of 5.3 days compared with all other combinations. Two nitrogenous compounds, peptone and sodium nitrate, caused 54 and 51% larval mortalities; however, this increase in efficacy was not significantly different from the mortalities caused by Bt applied without any additive. Urea increased larval mortality from 40% to 51%, although the increase was not significant from a Bt spray application only. Citric acid had no significant effect on the efficacy of Bt spray against S. recurvalis larvae. Overall, among the additives evaluated, the efficacy of Bt spray was most enhanced by boric acid and could be further evaluated under field conditions for validation, and integration into an Integrated Pest Management (IPM) strategy for S. recurvalis management