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ARS Home » Plains Area » Sidney, Montana » Northern Plains Agricultural Research Laboratory » Pest Management Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #255340
Title: Novel Approaches in Formulation of Entomopathogenic Fungi for Control of Insects in Soil, Foliar, and Structural Habitats: Thinking Outside the Box and Expecting the Unexpected

Author
item Jaronski, Stefan
item Jackson, Mark
item Dunlap, Christopher
item Meikle, William

Submitted to: Invertebrate Pathology International Colloquium Proceedings
Publication Type: Proceedings
Publication Acceptance Date: 7/10/2010
Publication Date: 7/10/2010
Citation: Jaronski, S., Jackson, M.A., Dunlap, C.A., Meikle, W.G. 2010. Novel Approaches in Formulation of Entomopathogenic Fungi for Control of Insects in Soil, Foliar, and Structural Habitats: Thinking Outside the Box and Expecting the Unexpected. In: Proceedings of the 10th International Colloquium on Invertebrate Pathology and Microbial Control. 43th Annual Meeting of the Society for Invertebrate Pathology Conference , July 11-15, 2010, Trabzon, Turkey. 2010 CDROM.

Interpretive Summary: Mycoinsecticide formulations have typically involved sprayable products, such as oil flowables, emulsifiable suspensions or concentrates, wettable powders, and water dispersable granules. These can be sprayed out either undiluted or in water carrier, using standard agricultural application equipment. Various nutritive or inert carriers have been used to create granular formulations of these fungi for use against soil pests. Sometimes, however, completely different formulations, and applications of standard formulations arise from serendipity or necessity. Developing novel yet practical formulations may require thinking “outside the box” or being receptive to unexpected events. In this paper we present three such instances in mycoinsecticide formulations: a foam formulation, a novel dust formulation and a granule based on an unexpected discovery while seeking a more “normal” formulation.

Technical Abstract: By and large, mycoinsecticide formulations have involved sprayable products, typically oil flowables, emulsifiable suspensions, wettable powders, and water dispersable granules. Various nutritive or inert carriers have been used to create granular formulations for use against soil pests. Sometimes, however, completely different formulations, and applications of standard formulations arise from serendipity or necessity. Three examples are the keratin hydrolyzate foam formulation, an electrostatically-chargeable carnauba wax powder carrier, and Metarhizium microsclerotia-based granules discovered by USDA ARS in recent years. A foam formulation of Isaria fumosorosea blastospores was developed to fill the need for delivering the fungus into termite infested structures. The foam also has potential with tree bark treatments and even foliar applications. The carnuba wax dust carrier arose from the need to deliver fungal conidia to Varroa mite in bee hives. The discovery of Metarhizium microsclerotia was an unexpected result of developing a “standard” mycelial granule. The utility of granules made from these microsclerotia and their superiority to regular mycelial or other granules became readily apparent in production, shelf life, and bioassay studies.