Evaluation of some microbial agents, natural and chemical compounds for controlling tomato leaf miner, Tuta absoluta (Meyrick) (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae)

Abstract

Solanaceous plants have a great economic impact in Egypt. These groups of plants include potatoes, tomatoes and eggplants. The new invasive pest of tomatoes, Tuta absoluta (Meyrick) causes the greatest crop losses which can range from 60 to 100%.After its detection in Egypt during the last half of 2009, it spread quickly to all provinces in the country. We aiming to propose a sustainable control program for this devastating pest. In this research we tested three groups of control agents. The first was microbial and natural, the second -plant extracts and the third -chemical insecticides. Our results showed that the impact of T. absoluta can be greatly reduced by the use of sustainable control measures represented by different insecticide groups. Bioassay experiments showed that this devastating pest can be controlled with some compounds that give high mortality rates. Of these compounds, spinosad and Beauveria bassiana, microbial control agents, followed by azadirachtin, gave the best results in controlling T. absoluta. Of the chemical insecticides, lambda-cyhalotrin was the most effective, followed by lufenuron and profenofos. In conclusion we encourage farmers to use microbial and natural control measures in combating the tomato leafminer, T. absoluta, in Integrated Pest Mangement (IPM) programs.

Efficacy of some biorational insecticides against Tuta absoluta (Meyrick) (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae) under laboratory and greenhouse conditions in Kuwait

“…Individually, the biopesticides, especially Azadirachtin , B. thuringiensis and B. bassiana, provided some degree of control of the pests, though not as effectively as the combination treatments. The potential of these biopesticides in controlling T. absoluta was also demonstrated in other laboratory and greenhouse studies (Abd El‐Ghanny et al, ; Abd El‐Ghany et al, ). However, in this study, the Azadirachtin + B .…”

“…These natural products offer a number of advantages over chemical pesticides because they have a reduced risk of pest resistance, are environmentally friendly, and harmless to humans and non‐target organisms (Huang et al, ).The entomopathogenic bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) is widely used for controlling various agricultural pests. More than 3,000 species, belonging to 16 orders of insects including T. absoluta , have been reported as susceptible to B. thuringiensis (Abd El‐Ghany, Abdel‐Razek, Ebadah, & Mahmoud, ; Melo, Soccol, & Soccol, ). Other entomopathogens have also been demonstrated to suppress populations of T. absoluta , notably entomopathogenic nematodes (EPNs) belonging to the families Steinernematidae and Heterorhabditidae (Batalla‐Carrera, Morton, & García‐del‐Pino, ; Van‐Damme et al, ), and the entomopathogenic fungi Beauveria bassiana (Abd El‐Ghanny et al, ; Rodriguez, Gerding, & France, ).…”

“…These natural products offer a number of advantages over chemical pesticides because they have a reduced risk of pest resistance, are environmentally friendly, and harmless to humans and non-target organisms (Huang et al, 2004).The entomopathogenic bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) is widely used for controlling various agricultural pests. More than 3,000 species, belonging to 16 orders of insects including T. absoluta, have been reported as susceptible to B. thuringiensis (Abd El-Ghany, Abdel-Razek, Ebadah, & Mahmoud, 2016;Melo, Soccol, & Soccol, 2016 Van-Damme et al, 2016), and the entomopathogenic fungi Beauveria bassiana (Abd El-Ghanny et al, 2018;Rodriguez, Gerding, & France, 2006). Similarly, the use of botanical insecticides, especially azadirachtin, against T. absoluta has been explored with promising results (Tome et al, 2013).…”

Endophytic colonisation of tomato by the entomopathogenic fungus Beauveria bassiana: the use of different inoculation techniques and their effects on the tomato leafminer Tuta absoluta (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae)

“…This pest was initially reported in eastern Spain in late 2006 and has subsequently spread throughout the Mediterranean Basin and Europe (Potting 2009). Since the time of its initial detection, it has caused serious damage to tomato crops in invaded areas and it is currently considered a major agricultural threat to European and North African tomato production (Abd El-Ghany et al 2016). Although its main host is tomato, it also affects other Solanaceae, whether cultivated or not (Tropea Garzia et al 2012).…”

Susceptibility of Cypriot Tuta absoluta populations to four targeted insecticides and control failure likelihood

“…Even though the control of pests principally depends on insecticides (Roditakis et al, ; Wang & Wu, ), the management of pests’ populations should also include preventive and other corrective measures (Naranjo & Ellsworth, ). Such measures should combine pheromone traps, predators, parasitoids, insect pathogens and plant extracts (Abd El‐Ghany, Abdel‐Razek, Ebadah, & Mahmoud, ; Alili, Doumandji, Benrima, Doumandji, & Doumandji, ; Biondi, Desneux, Amiens‐Desneux, Siscaro, & Zappalà, ; Messelink & Janssen, ; Michaelides, Sfenthourakis, Pitsillou, & Seraphides, ; Mollá, González‐Cabrera, & Urbaneja, ; Urbaneja, Montón, & Mollá, ). In addition, an excessive use of insecticides often leads to a reduction of their effectiveness due to survival of resistant genotypes (Perry, Yamamoto, Ishaaya, & Perry, ).…”