Characterization of Beauveria Bassiana and Metarhizium Anisopliae Isolates for Potential Use Against the Coffee Berry Borer

Abstract

The coffee berry borer (CBB), Hypothenemus hampei (Ferrari) (Coleoptera: Scolytidae), is the most serious pest of coffee in Colombia and many other countries. This pest originated in central Africa and was accidentally introduced to Brazil at the beginning of the century (Murphy and Moore, 1990). Since its arrival in Colombia in 1988, the Colombian Coffee Growers Federation and its research centre, CENICAFE, have promoted extensive research into alternative control strategies using an IPM system. Biological control with parasitoids and with entomopathogenic fungi (Beauveria bassiana and Metharizium anisopliae) are promising control methods, offering an environmentally benign alternative to chemical pesticides (Cadena, 1993). Coleoptera are known to be susceptible to B. bass iana. The fungus may have spread with the pest as the latter colonised new geographic areas or it may have “jumped” from other local insects (Bridge et al., 1990). To exploit the potential application of B. bassiana and M. anisopliae against CBB in Colombia, we used morphological and biochemical techniques to characterize isolates in order to select the best strain to use as a mycoinsecticide against CBB.