Biocontrol Potential of Entomopathogenic Fungi against Tetranychus urticae Koch (Acari: Tetranychidae)
Biocontrol Potential of Entomopathogenic Fungi against Tetranychus urticae Koch (Acari: Tetranychidae)
Sultan Çobanoğlu1, Waheed Anwar2*, Muhammad Asim Javed2 and Hafiz Azhar Ali Khan3
ABSTRACT
The two spotted spider mite, Tetranychus urticae Koch (Acari: Tetranychidae) is an economic pest in several field crops, fruits, and vegetables. The objective of the present study was to evaluate the efficacy of entomopathogenic fungi using two concentrations (4×104 and 4×108 conidia/ml): Beauveria bassiana, Metarhizium anisopliae, Trichoderma longibrachiatum and Verticillium lecanii, against the adult female of T. urticae strains (red and green) using leaf-disc bioassay method. Their corrected mortalities were also calculated using Abbot formula. Results indicated that the concentration 4×108 conidia/ml of Trichoderma longibrachiatum caused the highest mortality of red (86.97%) and green (88.63%) strains of T. urticae. Beauveria bassiana, V. lecanii and M. anisopliae have also caused significant mortality ranging from 40.1 to 65.4% of both strains at the 4×108 conidia/ml suspension. Based on smaller LT50 value and non-overlapping 95% CI, T. longibrachiatum took the least significant time to kill 50% of the subjected mites population at both concentrations when compared with rest of the fungi. The adult female T. urticae exposed to the infection of respective entomopathogenic fungi upon death after the seven days of incubation and the fungal mycelial growth appeared around the mite’s body. The fungal infection was also verified after re-isolation of dead T. urticae covered with mycelial growth.
To share on other social networks, click on any share button. What are these?
