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Abstract
This research, under laboratory condition, evaluated the efficiency of different strains of entomopatogenic fungus Beauveria bassiana to control leaf-cutting ant Atta sexdens rubropilosa. Soldiers and workers were inoculated with suspensions containing 1.0x107, 1.0x108, 1.0x109 and 1.0x1010 con mL-1 and maintained in B.O.D, at 25±1°C, 70% RH and 12 hours of photophase, without food. The mortality was evaluated daily, with 15 days after inoculation. Experimental design was entirely random. The sporulation data were submitted to the analysis of variance and the LT50 values (in days) were obtained through the Probit analysis. All strains of B. bassiana were pathogenic, being workers more susceptible than soldiers. The strains IBCB 21 and IBCB 07 caused high percentages of confirmed mortality showing potential for use in the control of A. sexdens rubropilosa. Strain IBCB 21 was more virulent for workers, whereas isolated IBCB 07 was more virulent for soldiers. Both isolates presented no significant difference among tested concentrations.
Highlights
The leaf-cutting ants, that belong to Atta genus, Attini tribe (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), are considered herbivores which stand out in the Neotropical region (Holldobler & Wilson, 1990) and are responsible for great damages in vegetal production (Hernández & Jaffé, 1995)
The specimens of soldiers and workers from Atta sexdens rubropilosa were collected from nests at the UFGD campus and placed in recipients with screened lids, separated by castes
We used the following Beauveria bassiana strains: IBCB 07, IBCB 21 and IBCB 66, belonging to the entomopathogenic bank from the Biologic Institute of Campinas; the strain ESALQ 447, which belongs to the superior school of agriculture Luiz de Queiroz (ESALQ/USP); and the UFGD 02 and UFGD 11 strains, that belongs to the entomopathogenic bank of Federal University of Mato Grosso do Sul (UFMS/CPCS)
Summary
The leaf-cutting ants, that belong to Atta genus, Attini tribe (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), are considered herbivores which stand out in the Neotropical region (Holldobler & Wilson, 1990) and are responsible for great damages in vegetal production (Hernández & Jaffé, 1995). The leaf-cutting ants have several biological features and complex behavior, such as architecture, size, and place of the nests; system of protection for the queen; production of anti-microbial substances and “grooming” (cleansing), which complicate their control (Marinho et al, 2006). Most of their control methods are based on application of great quantities of chemical products. These products are expensive and generally not effective since they only apparently exterminate the colony or change the place of the nest. These methods lead to selection of resistant populations, and cause damages to the environment and human health, since they are extremely toxic (Diehl-Fleig et al, 1993; Meirelles et al, 2015)
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