Laboratory Evaluation of Efficacy of Entomopathogenic Nematodes on Texas Leaf-cutting Ants, Atta texana

摘要

Entomopathogenic nematodes, a large group of nematodes specialized for parasitism of insects, have been used as classical biological control agents. The nematodes have potential to be used for insect pest management in organic gardening. We studied the potential impact of two entomopathogenic nematodes Steinerneima carpocapsae Weiser and Heterohabditis bacteriophora Poinar on the Texas leaf-cutting ant, Atta texana Buckley, that is considered a problematic agricultural pest in the southern US. We used a relatively large exposure rate of 250,000 nematodes per 10 ants in Petri dishes and monitored ant activity during a 96-hour time period. Results showed no significant differences among the two nematodes and check in numbers of ants killed after 12, 24, 48, 72, or even 96 hours of exposure.