Fall armyworm (FAW), Spodoptera frugiperda, is an invasive insect pest with a diverse host range threatening food security in the African continent by causing severe economic damage to staple maize crop. FAW like all other insects are associated with various microbiota that influence their several characteristics and activities. The microbiota of insects plays important roles in their growth, development and environmental adaptation to their host plants or animals and not much is known about microbiota of FAW in Nigeria. In this study, the microbial community of FAW larvae from maize plants in Nigeria was investigated using Illumina PE250 NovaSeq of 16S rRNA V3-V4 gene region. A total of 1,160,133 sequence reads that ranged from 83,794 to 145,475 were obtained. They span through 2 kingdoms: bacteria (99.59%) and archaea (0.37%), 37 phyla, 59 classes, 78 orders, 145 families and 285 genera. The dominant taxonomic group of bacteria across the larval samples were Proteobacteria (58.32%), Firmicutes (35.87%) and Bacteroidetes (4.02%). There were no significant differences in bacteria species diversity and richness among the individual fall armyworm larva and samples from different geographical regions. The relative abundance of Bacteria phyla and classes also showed no significant differences among the larval samples. Significant differences were documented in bacteria orders Acidobacteriales and Aeromonadales, family Acidobacteriaceae_ (Subgroup_1) and genera Novosphingobium and Pedobacter. The results indicate that the gut of FAW larvae harbours a diverse set of bacteria and archaea biota. Understanding their ecological and functional relevance would provide novel insight on potential approaches for their exploitation in the integrated management of FAW in the tropics.
Damage of fruits by insect pests is one of the major problems faced by fruit sellers in many parts of the country. African star apple Chrysophyllum albidum G.Don. is one of the indigenous fruits that are highly damaged by insect pests during the fruiting season and in storage. A survey of markets and environs were carried out in Ibadan metropolis during the fruiting seasons for two years to determine the associated insect pests and the extent of damage done to C. albidum. Samples of ripe fruits were randomly collected from seven markets and homestead trees at different locations in Ibadan metropolis. Samples were examined in the laboratory at the Federal College of Forestry for damage and the causative agents were identified. Collections made periodically from green fruits to ripening in orchard at Forestry Research Institute of Nigeria showed that infestation of unripe fruits was by scale insects Coccus hesperidum L. while the ripe fruits were mainly attacked by fruit flies (Drosphillla spp. and Cerattis capitata Weid). Infestations were most severe in the market samples than the homestead tree samples. Severity of infestation ranged between 10-35% of the sampled fruits during the periods of the study. There were no significant differences (p>0.05) in the number of fruit fly species collected from different markets or from trees in the sampled locations. There were positive and negative correlations between the ripeness of fruits and attack by fruit flies and scale insects respectively.
Background: Insect pests infestation is one the major constraints to cowpea production in many Sub-Saharan Africa including Nigeria. Control of these pests by farmers has been vastly by use of chemical pesticide which possesses lots of threats to human health and environments. This study is aimed at evaluating insecticidal efficacy of petroleum ether seed extracts of four plants (Azadirachta indica, A. Juss, Piper guineense Schum and Thonn, Annona muricata L., and Jatropha curcas L.) against legume flower thrips, Megalurothrips sjostedti Tryb., and legume pod borer, Maruca vitrata Fab. on cowpea as alternative eco-friendly options for the control of the cowpea field pests. Methods: The extracts were applied at the rate of 10 ml/l of water at 1 week intervals for 6 weeks starting from 7 weeks after sowing (WAS) and replicate three times. The extracts were compared with lambdacyhalothrin at 5 ml/l of water as a standard check and untreated control. Results: The results showed that all the treatments significantly (p < 0.05) reduced the population of legume bud thrips and legume pod borer compared to control. A. muricata followed by Piper guineense significantly (p < 0.01) reduced the population of legume flower thrips and legume pod borer as well as pod damage compared to other extracts. The percentage reduction of M. sjostedti and M. vitrata population by the extracts ranged from 52.07-69.28% and 57.78-78.52% respectively compared to control. Cowpea yield was significantly (p < 0.05) higher in plots treated with A. muricata and Piper guinense compared to other extracts. The efficacies of A. muricata and P. guineese were significantly (p < 0.05) higher than lambdacyhalothrin for the control of legume flower thrips and legume pod borer of cowpea. Conclusion: Petroleum ether seed extracts of A. muricata and P. guineense were very potent against legume flower thrips and pod borer, and thus they can be effectively used by smallholder farmers for the management of cowpea post flowering pests. These plant products are readily available, environment friendly, and are suitable for low-income agriculture practiced in developing countries.
Mass trapping has demonstrated to be a powerful tool in the control of fruit flies, its use in African countries has currently increased remarkably as a control method. This study evaluated the efficacy of two traps; Lynfield Trap (LT) and Modified Lynfield Trap(MLT) and two lures (Methyl Eugenol (ME) and Protein Bait from Brewery Waste (PBBW)) for mass trapping of Bactrocera invadens Drew, Tsuruta, & White (Diptera: Tephritidae) on mango during 2014 and 2015 fruiting seasons. Traps containing attractants were randomly set on mango homestead trees in three replicates at three selected locations in Ibadan Southwest Nigeria. Results showed no significant difference (p > 0.01) between the trap types baited with ME attractant, although the MLT recorded higher catches of B. invadens during the two seasons. Methyl eugenol was significantly (p < 0.01) more effective than hydrolyzed protein bait from brewery waste in mass trapping B. invadens in the three locations of study. However, ME trapped only male B invadens while PBBW trapped both male and female. B. invadens population was highest at the peak of mango ripening (June) and the density of flies trapped in 2015 was significantly (p < 0.05) higher than 2014 in all the locations. Suitable choice of traps, lures and season enhances the mass trapping results. The use of Protein bait from brewery waste and modified lynfield trap for monitoring B. invadens and population suppression is promising and should be encouraged since they attract both sexes and less cost effective.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.