Laboratory testing of insect associated fungi for the control of wireworms (Agriotes sp. L.)

Abstract: The aim of the study was to assess entomopathogenic potential of 7 isolates from 6entomopathogenic fungal species (EPF) isolated from various substrats in Slovenia against larvaeof Agriotes sp. The fungal isolates tested were Beauveria bassiana, B. brongniartii, Metarhiziumanisopliae (2 isolates), M. robertsii, Purpureocillium lilacinum and Clonostachys solani. Conidiaof these species were incorporated into the test substrate as a water suspension to reach a finalconcentration of 3.85 x 106 conidia g-1 air-dried soil. The larval mortality was observed on aweekly basis for a total of 90 days. The mortalities observed exhibited a linear trend with slopesranging from 0.20 to 1.23 for the fungal treatments and 0.08 to 0.18 for the control treatments.Abbott’s corrected mortality at day 90 ranged from 20.7 to 76.9%. The most promising candidatebiological control agent was Metarhizium anisopliae isolate 1154.