Potential for Pink Bollworm Control with Entomopathogenic Nematodes

Abstract

The susceptibility of late instar pink bollworm (PBW), Pectinophora gosspiella (Saunders), larvae to two species of Steinemema was evaluated in small scale field tests in spring and summer of 1993. In the spring PBW mortality at 15 infective juveniles /cm² for S. carpocapsae and S. riobravis was 87 and 89 %, respectively. In midsummer, mortalities with S. riobravis were significantly greater than with S. carpocapsae at the four concentrations tested. A simple method was developed for small scale field testing and efficacy monitoring for PBW and other soil associated insects.