Evaluation of Entomopathogenic Nematodes against Common Wireworm Species in Potato Cultivation

• Published in: Pathogens (Basel) 2023-02, Vol.12 (2), p.288
• Main Authors: Askar, Arife Gümüş, Yüksel, Ebubekir, Bozbuğa, Refik, Öcal, Atilla, Kütük, Halil, Dinçer, Dilek, Canhilal, Ramazan, Dababat, Abdelfattah A, İmren, Mustafa
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Agricultural pests; Agriotes; Agriotes rufipalpis; Agriotes spp; Agriotes sputator; beneficial nematodes; Bioassays; biocontrol; Biological control; Control; Cultivation; Diseases and pests; Economic importance; Elateridae; Entomopathogenic nematodes; Environmental aspects; Experiments; exposure duration; Heterorhabditis bacteriophora; Humidity; Infections; Inoculation; Insecticides; Insects; Laboratories; Larvae; Mortality; Nematoda; Nematodes; Pests; potato; Potatoes; Soil chemistry; Soils; Species; Steinernema carpocapsae; Steinernema feltiae; Steinernema spp; Strains (organisms); Vegetables
• ISSN: 2076-0817; 2076-0817
• DOI: 10.3390/pathogens12020288

Wireworms (Coleoptera: Elateridae) are common insect pests that attack a wide range of economically important crops including potatoes. The control of wireworms is of prime importance in potato production due to the potential damage of the larvae to tuber quantity and quality. Chemical insecticides, the main control strategy against wireworms, generally fail to provide satisfactory control due to the lack of available chemicals and the soil-dwelling habits of the larvae. In the last decades, new eco-friendly concepts have emerged in the sustainable control of wireworms, one of which is entomopathogenic nematodes (EPNs). EPNs are soil-inhabitant organisms and represent an ecological approach to controlling a great variety of soil-dwelling insect pests. In this study, the susceptibility of Linnaeus and Brullé larvae, the most common wireworm species in potato cultivation in Türkiye, to native EPN strains [ (Sc_BL22), (Sf_BL24 and Sf_KAY4), and (Hb_KAY10 and Hb_AF12)] were evaluated at two temperatures (25 and 30 °C) in pot experiments. Hb_AF12 was the most effective strain at 30 °C six days post-inoculation and caused 37.5% mortality to larvae. larvae were more susceptible to tested EPNs at the same exposure time, and 50% mortality was achieved by two EPNs species, Hb_AF12 and Sc_BL22. All EPN species/strains induced mortality over 70% to both wireworm species at both temperatures at 100 IJs/cm , 18 days post-treatment. The results suggest that tested EPN species/strains have great potential in the control of and larvae.