Abstract: Seventeen isolates of Metarhizium anisopliae (Metschnikoff) Sorokin and three isolates of Beauveria bassiana (Balsamo) Vuillemin (Hypocreales: Clavicipitaceae) were evaluated for their pathogenicity to the adult pea leafminer, Liriomyza huidobrensis (Blanchard) (Diptera: Agromyzidae),in the laboratory. Flies were contaminated with dry conidia through a velvet material wrapped around the inner side of a cylindrical plastic tube. All the isolates were pathogenic to the pea leafminer,...
Abstract: The abundance of banana flower thrips (Thrips hawaiiensis Morgan) in a banana (Musa acuminata Colla ªWilliamsº cultivar) plantation was investigated using yellow sticky traps (29.70 cm × 21.00 cm) in 2015. Banana flower thrips occurred throughout the year with monthly variation, and the maximum occurrence was observed in October and November during the bud burst (73.80 ± 6.32 adults/trap) and young fruit (70.06 ± 5.69 adults/trap) periods. The damage rates were as follows: int...
Abstract: In Lepidoptera, larval dietary experience of volatile cues can induce adult preference for these cues. However, such induction may require several generations, depending in part on the degree of specialization of the insects. In a previous study,using species of noctuid stem borers with different diet breadths, namely the polyphagous Sesamia nonagrioides, the oligophagous Busseola fusca and monophagous Busseola nairobica, it was shown that in S. nonagrioides, one generation was eno...
Abstract: The antestia bug, Antestiopsis thunbergii (Gmelin 1790) is a major pest of Arabica coffee in Africa. The bug prefers coffee at the highest elevations, contrary to other major pests. The objectives of this study were to describe the relationship between A. thunbergii populations and elevation, to elucidate this relationship using our knowledge of the pest thermal biology and to predict the pest distribution under climate warming. Antestiopsis thunbergii population density was assess...
Abstract: Fopius arisanus (Sonan), a solitary koinobiont endoparasitoid of fruit flies, was introduced for testing and final release against the recently discovered species Bactrocera invadens Drew, Tsuruta and White in Africa. Laboratory experiments were conducted to assess host preference, host acceptability for oviposition, and physiological suitability of B. invadens and five other indigenous tephritid fruit fly species, namely, Ceratitis capitata (Wiedemann) (Diptera: Tephritidae), C. c...
Abstract: Global population growth, an increasing demand for animalproducts and scarcity of conventional feed ingredients drivethe search for alternative protein sources for animal feed.Extensive research indicates that insects provide goodopportunities as a sustainable, high quality and low-costcomponent of animal feed. Here, we discuss how insectfarming can promote inclusive business for smallholder farmersin the agribusiness value chain. Inclusive business modelsinvolving insects as ingre...
Abstract: Background: Rice stem borers are among the most biotic stresses of economic importance in agriculture. Little was known about stem borer problem in Tanzania prior to this study. Understanding stem borer abundance and damages would help to design appropriate stem borer integrated pest management strategy in rice. This study was aimed at investigating rice stem borerʼs species abundance and their associated damages in irrigated lowland rice ecosystem in Kilombero Tanzania. Materials...
Abstract: Distribution of rice stem borers and their parasitoid, in irrigated low land rice ecosystem in Kilombero district, Morogoro, Tanzania was studied from March – July 2017 in randomly sampled thirty rice fields. Rice stem borer larvae was sampled at two growth stages of rice, the vegetative stage and reproductive stage using 1m2 quadrat. The study revealed the presence of one species of parasitoid from family braconidae (Cotesia flavipes) which was found parasitizing the stem borer ...
Abstract: Citrus is considered one of the most important fruit crops globally due to its contribution to food and nutritional security. However, the production of citrus has recently been in decline due to many biological, environmental, and socio-economic constraints. Amongst the biological ones,pests and diseases play a major role in threatening citrus quantity and quality. The most damaging disease in Kenya, is the African citrus greening disease (ACGD) or Huanglongbing (HLB) which is tra...
Abstract: Background: Anopheles gambiae larvae traditionally thrive in non-polluted environments. We previously documented the presence of the larvae in heavy metal polluted urban aquatic environments and the associated biological cost. The goal of this study was to unravel the molecular dynamics involved in the adaptation of the mosquitoes to the heavy metals. Methods: Total RNA was extracted from third instar larvae of both cadmium treated populations and untreated control populations. The...
Abstract: The parasitoid lifestyle represents one of the most diversified life history strategies on earth. There are however very few studies on the variables associated with intraspecific diversity of parasitoid insects, especially regarding the relationship with spatial, biotic and abiotic ecological factors. Cotesia sesamiae is a Sub-Saharan stenophagous parasitic wasp that parasitizes several African stemborer species with variable developmental success. The different host-specialized p...
Abstract: Understanding the ability of parasitoid insects to succeed in new host populations is a relevant question forbiological control and adaptive mechanisms.Cotesia typhaeis an African parasitoid specialized on the mothSesamiae nonagrioides, also called the Mediterranean corn borer. Two Kenyan strains ofC. typhaediffer in theirvirulence against a new host population from France. We explored behavioral and physiological hypothesesabout this differentiation.Cotesiagenus belongs to a group...
Abstract: This paper explores the economic implications of fall armyworm (FAW) and its management strategies by exploiting exogenous variation in FAW exposure amongst households in southern Ethiopia. We find that FAW exposure affects maize yield and sales negatively, but not consumption. Furthermore, we find evidence of crowding in and intensification of insecticide use in response to FAW exposure. We also find suggestive evidence that existing extension service arrangements lack the capacit...
Abstract: Although the coffee berry borer, Hypothenemus hampei (Ferrari) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae) is the most destructive insect pest of coffee worldwide, there is much to learn about its thermal biology. This study aimed to develop temperature-based models for H. hampei development and to provide the thermal requirements of immature stages in the laboratory. Using a new observation method, larval development and survival were monitored daily on fresh Arabica coffee seeds, und...
Abstract: Efforts to recycle organic waste using black soldier fly (BSF) larvae into high-quality alternative proteinbingredients in animal feeds and organic fertilizers have gained momentum worldwide. However, there is limited information on waste manipulation to increase nutrient retention for enhanced larval perfor mance and frass fertilizer quality. In the present study, brewer’s spent grain with a carbon to nitrogen (C/ N) ratio of 11 (control) was amended with sawdust to obtain subst...