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11 October 2019 Efficacy of Entomopathogenic Nematodes Against the Tobacco Cutworm, Spodoptera litura (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)
Xun Yan, Muhammad Shahid Arain, Yinying Lin, Xinghui Gu, Limeng Zhang, Jiangzhou Li, Richou Han
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Abstract

Spodoptera litura (F.) is an obnoxious cosmopolitan pest that causes serious damage to different economic crops. Entomopathogenic nematodes (EPN) have the potential to control the S. litura larvae. Fifteen EPN isolates were screened, and Steinernema sp. 64-2, four isolates of S. carpocapsae (Weiser), S. longicaudum (Shen & Wang) X-7, and two isolates of H. indica (Poinar, Karunaka & David) were found to cause higher mortality of the second, third, and fourth instars of S. litura than the other tested isolates, with larval mortality rates > 90% after 48 h of exposure. An exposure rate of 12.5 infective juveniles per larva was enough for S. carpocapsae A24, All, and G-R3a-2 and S. longicaudum X-7 to cause 100% mortality of the second instar, and for S. longicaudum X-7 and H. indica 212-2 to cause 100% mortality of the third instar. Five EPN isolates were tested on their virulence at different temperatures and found that all the five EPN isolates performed well against the S. litura larvae at 25 and 30°C, but were not active at 10 and 15°C. Two S. carpocapsae isolates (All and Mex) were virulent against the S. litura larvae at lower temperatures. The five tested EPN isolates were also found to have the ability to infect and kill the pupae of S. litura in the laboratory. The present study further proves that EPN are effective at controlling S. litura, which may partially substitute the use of chemical insecticides, thus reduce the overuse of chemical insecticides.

© The Author(s) 2019. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.
Xun Yan, Muhammad Shahid Arain, Yinying Lin, Xinghui Gu, Limeng Zhang, Jiangzhou Li, and Richou Han "Efficacy of Entomopathogenic Nematodes Against the Tobacco Cutworm, Spodoptera litura (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)," Journal of Economic Entomology 113(1), 64-72, (11 October 2019). https://doi.org/10.1093/jee/toz262
Received: 12 March 2019; Accepted: 3 September 2019; Published: 11 October 2019
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KEYWORDS
biological control
Heterorhabditis
Spodoptera litura
Steinernema
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