Pathogenicity of Different Entomopathogens on White Grubs of Lepidiota mansueta (Burmeister) (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) under Laboratory Conditions

Document Type : Original Research

Authors
S. Dumala
B. Bhattacharyya
P. Das
B. Borah
B. M. Ganesh
Department of Entomology, College of Agriculture, Assam Agricultural University, Jorhat, 785013, Assam, India.
10.22034/JAST.27.3.703
Abstract
The present research was conducted to evaluate the efficacy of six different entomopathogenic fungi and bacterial formulation against the third-instar grubs of a subterranean biennial white grub species, Lepidiota mansueta. All treatments proved effective, recording over 55% mortality of white grubs compared to the untreated control at 30 Days After Treatment (DAT). However, the highest cumulative mortality (76%) was observed in Beauveria bassiana (KR855715), followed by 72% in Beauveria brongniartii (BbUASB16) and 70.67% in Bio-Bt (Bacillus thuringiensis) treated grubs. Metarhizium anisopliae-based formulation (Bio-Meta) exhibited the lowest mortality rate (58.67%). Overall, B. bassiana (KR855715) and B. brongniartii (BbUASB16) demonstrated higher virulence towards L. mansueta grubs, indicating their potential as biological control agents against these pests. The LT50 values varied from 12.15 to 23.05 days when L. mansueta grubs were treated with different entomopathogenic treatments. In case of KR855715 strain, the LT50 value recorded was 12.15 days (FL 11.15-13.11), which was the lowest, and in Bio-Meta, the LT50 recorded was 23.05 days (FL 19.24-30.33), which was the highest. In conclusion, as chemical pesticides are not always the best option for controlling scarabs, entomopathogenic fungus can be incorporated into Integrated Pest Management (IPM) strategies as biological control agents. This is especially useful for managing populations of early-season white grubs. Therefore, to keep the pest population in an environmentally balanced level and to provide long-term control for the grubs, these tested entomopathogens may serve as possible biocontrol agents against L. mansueta grubs.

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