Action of the entomopathogenic fungus Beauveria bassiana against the arboreal termite Nasutitermes sp

Abstract

The use of entomopathogenic agents has been a viable alternative in the control of insect-plague.
This work aimed to evaluate the action of the fungus Beauveria bassiana on the arboreal
termite Nasutitermes sp.The bioassay occurred in September of 2016, and it was realized in the
Plant Virology and Phytopathology Laboratory at the State University of Southwest of Bahia, in
Vitória da Conquista. The fungus Beauveria bassiana was obtained from Brassolis caterpillars
colonized by the entomopathogen present in an imperial palm located in the Tancredo Neves
square, in the city of Vitória da Conquista, Bahia.From the fungus isolate the spore solution
was prepared, with a concentration of 106 sporos mL-1. 1 ml of the fungal spore suspension
was inoculated into Petri dishes containing 10 adult soldiers, welded insects, totaling 05 plates
with fungal spores and 1 control plate, using a 2 mL volumetric pipette to add distilled water.
Afterwards, the plates were conditioned in a germinating chamber of the type B.O.D, with temperature
of 25º C and photoperiod of 12 hours. Evaluations occurred in the first 06, 12, 24, 48, 72 and 96 hours after spraying. The results showed that the fungus caused mortality of 66,7%
of the insects 72 hours after inoculation, indicating that the Beauveria bassiana collected from
Brassolis caterpillars of the city is pathogenic to the arboreal termite Nasutitermes sp., Presenting
potential for field bioassays.