Abstract
The pathogenicity of insect-pathogenic hyphomycetous isolates to the lesser mealworm Alphitobius diaperinus (Panzer) was tested in this study. Thirty isolates of Beauveria bassiana (Balsamo) Vuillemin, Paecilomyces amoenoroseus (Hennings), P. fumosoroseus (Wize) Brown & Smith, P. lilacinus (Thom) Samson, P. tenuipes (Petch) Samson, Metarhizium anisopliae (Metschnikoff) Sorokin, and M. anisopliae var. acridum were initially screened by sprinkling dry conidia onto adult A. diaperinus or by allowing adults to walk on Petri dishes with sporulating fungal isolates. The two most virulent isolates, CNPSo-Ma352 (M. anisopliae) and CNPSo-Ma356 (M. anisopliae), killed 30% and 26.7% of the dry-conidia treated adults, respectively. These two isolates were selected for LD50 bioassays. LD50 of CNPSo-Ma352 was 4.5 x 10(4) conidia per larva, and 2.1 x 10(5) conidia per adult, and for strain CNPSo-Ma356, LD50 was 2.2 x 10(4) conidia per larva and 1.3 x 10(5) conidia per adult. Larvae were 5-6 times more susceptible than adults. A larger number of conidia required to cause 50% mortality in insect evaluates, suggesting the reduced susceptibility of A. diaperinus to entomopathogenic fungi. Nevertheless, these and other strains of fungus offer an alternative method for controlling of lesser mealworm in poultry houses when associated to integrated management.
Highlights
The lesser mealworm or little beetle, Alphitobius diaperinus (Panzer) is the most important poultry-house pest in Brazil, where it successfully breeds, feeds, and develops in the mixture of warm litter and poultry droppings
Thirty isolates of Beauveria bassiana (Balsamo) Vuillemin, Paecilomyces amoenoroseus (Hennings), P. fumosoroseus (Wize) Brown & Smith, P. lilacinus (Thom) Samson, P. tenuipes (Petch) Samson, Metarhizium anisopliae (Metschnikoff) Sorokin, and M. anisopliae var. acridum were initially screened by sprinkling dry conidia onto adult A. diaperinus or by allowing adults to walk on Petri dishes with sporulating fungal isolates
Many authors have stressed that fungal susceptibility is reasonably well-known for beetles, and in general, when beetles are exposed to large concentrations of conidia (107 conidia/mL), mortality can be very high
Summary
The lesser mealworm or little beetle, Alphitobius diaperinus (Panzer) is the most important poultry-house pest in Brazil, where it successfully breeds, feeds, and develops in the mixture of warm litter and poultry droppings. Beetles (adults and larvae) feed on feed residues, feces, and dead or dying birds (Pfeiffer & Axtell, 1980). They are considered to be important vectors of pathogens, such as Salmonella typhimurium (Loeffler), Escherichia coli Lignieris, avian leukosis virus, and turkey enterovirus and rotavirus (McAllister et al, 1994; 1995). The control of A. diaperinus is important for poultry health and production, as well as for reducing the nuisance they cause It is difficult, to obtain good control because chemical insecticides are not effective, and repeated applications may cause the development of resistance. Other alternatives must be developed to control this important pest
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