Journal of Insect Science (2010) 10 (62), 1-18

W.R. Reid, B.L. Parker, S.Y. Gouli, M. Skinner, V.V. Gouli and H.B. Teillon (2010)
Fungi associated with the hemlock woolly adelgid, Adelges tsugae, and assessment of entomopathogenic isolates for management
Journal of Insect Science 10 (62), 1-18
Abstract: Fungi associated with the hemlock wooly adelgid, Adelges tsugae Annand (Hemiptera: Adelgidae), were collected throughout the eastern USA and southern China. Twenty fungal genera were identified, as were 79 entomopathogenic isolates, including: Lecanicillium lecanii (Zimmermann) (Hypocreales: Insertae sedis), Isaria farinosa (Holm: Fries.) (Cordycipitaceae), Beauveria bassiana (Balasamo) (Hyphomycetes), and Fusarium spp (Nectriaceae). The remaining fungal genera associated with insect cadavers were similar for both the USA and China collections, although the abundance of Acremonium (Hypocreaceae) was greater in China. The entomopathogenic isolates were assayed for efficacy against Myzus persicae (Sulzer) (Homoptera: Aphididae) and yielded mortality ranging from 3 to 92%. Ten isolates demonstrating the highest efficacy were further assessed for efficacy against field-collected A. tsugae under laboratory conditions. Overall, two B. bassiana, one L. lecanii, and a strain of Metarhizium anisopliae (Metchnikoff) (Hypocreales: Clavicipitaceae), demonstrated significantly higher efficacy against A. tsugae than the others. Isolates were further evaluated for conidial production, germination rate and colony growth at four temperatures representative of field conditions. All isolates were determined to be mesophiles with optimal temperature between 25-30° C. In general, conidial production increased with temperature, though two I. farinosa produced significantly more conidia at cooler temperatures. When efficacy values were compared with conidial production and temperature tolerances, Agricultural Research Service Collection of Entomopathogenic Fungi (ARSEF) 1080, 5170, and 5798 had characteristics comparable to the industrial B. bassiana strain GHA.
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Database assignments for author(s): Bruce L. Parker, Margaret Skinner

Research topic(s) for pests/diseases/weeds:
biocontrol - natural enemies
Research topic(s) for beneficials or antagonists:
surveys/distribution/isolation
evaluation - screening - selection

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Pest and/or beneficial records:

Beneficial	Pest/Disease/Weed	Crop/Product	Country	Quarant.
	Adelges tsugae	Hemlock (Tsuga)	China (south)
	Adelges tsugae	Hemlock (Tsuga)	U.S.A. (NE)
Beauveria bassiana (entomopathogen)	Adelges tsugae
Metarhizium anisopliae (entomopathogen)	Adelges tsugae
Akanthomyces muscarius (entomopathogen)	Adelges tsugae
Cordyceps farinosa (entomopathogen)	Adelges tsugae