Incorporating Beauveria bassiana Into an Integrated Pest Management Plan for Coffee Berry Borer in Hawaii

Abstract

Since its recent establishment in Hawaii, the coffee berry borer (CBB), Hypothenemus hampei (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), threatens yields, quality, and price of coffee production. A limited number of insecticides (primarily Beauveria bassiana) are used to control CBB with minimal disruption in this agroecosystem. We evaluated two insecticide spray strategies across eight coffee farms in the Kona and Ka'u districts of Hawaii Island. Coffee growers sprayed insecticides approximately monthly (calendar basis) or else in response to CBB field monitoring data (threshold based). Overall, farms adopting spray thresholds performed more insecticide applications early in the season (May to July), but significantly fewer overall, when compared with calendar-based strategies (i.e., 4-5 vs. 7-11 seasonal sprays, respectively). Generalized linear models assessing the variability in CBB infestation rates, berry penetration, and infection by B. bassiana indicated that threshold-based sprays provided equivalent CBB control compared with calendar ones. When corrected for yield, there were economic savings for threshold-vs. calendar-based spray programs (i.e., cost 5.4 vs. 11.8% of gross yield). Total defects in processed coffee after harvest were statistically similar between the two spray regimes, i.e., 8.5 ± 1.0% and 10.4 ± 1.7%, respectively. We hypothesize that B. bassiana applied early in the season is more effective, since the fungus targets initial CBB infestations when the prolonged location of founder females in the outer berry endosperm favors its infection. Our study suggests that spray timing for CBB based on field monitoring data can reduce costs; however, additional measures, such as field and post-harvest sanitation, are necessary to achieve sustainable CBB control in the Islands.

Emergence and Infestation Level of Hypothenemus hampei (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) on Coffee Berries on the Plant or on the Ground During the Post-harvest Period in Brazil

“…Coffee berries on the ground may be previously infested while on the plants, but heavy rains may accelerate their decay, preventing CBB infestation ( Cárdenas and Baker 2010 ). The sustainable management program for CBB has to consider the concept of integrating other methods, such as the use of Beauveria bassiana which has successfully been used in Colombia ( Bustillo et al 1998 ) and Hawaii ( Greco et al 2018 , Hollingsworth et al 2020 ), the use of baited traps with semiochemicals to monitor flight activity and control and, if possible, using natural enemies (such as parasitoids, predatory ants, and flat bark beetles) that may be present in the area, with adoption of cultural control practices such as sanitation.…”

Precision Techniques and Agriculture 4.0 Technologies to Promote Sustainability in the Coffee Sector: State of the Art, Challenges and Future Trends

“…After crude oil, coffee is the most traded commodity in the world [36]. Coffee is grown on more than 10 million hectares of land worldwide, mainly in tropical and subtropical regions, justifying the largest coffee producers in the world being Brazil (36%), Vietnam (17%) and Colombia (8%) [27], [44] and represents a significant part of the Gross Domestic Product of these countries. Produced in more than 70 countries, the largest amount of coffee is produced in developing countries, and the largest consumption of beverage is in developed countries, whose growing demand has doubled the amount of coffee grown in the last decade [45], [46].…”

Coffee Berry Borer (Hypothenemus hampei), a Global Pest of Coffee: Perspectives from Historical and Recent Invasions, and Future Priorities

“…A recent study examining calendar (≈monthly) vs. threshold (based on field monitoring data) spray strategies of B. bassiana found that farms adopting the threshold strategy applied B. bassiana early in the season (May–July) and required fewer sprays to achieve the same level of control achieved with calendar sprays, resulting in a net benefit [ 203 ]. Research on the effect of dosage suggests that reduced rates (16 oz per acre) of BotaniGard ® ES may be just as effective as the recommended rate (32 oz per acre) in controlling CBB, particularly when combined with acceptable sanitation practices (L. Keith and S. Wraight, pers.…”