Potential of Native Entomopathogenic Nematodes (Steinernematidae) as Biological Control Agents of Tetranychus urticae Koch

Dorota Tumialis, Lidia Florczak (), Julia Dylewska, Magdalena Jakubowska, Jolanta Kowalska and Anna Mazurkiewicz
Additional contact information
Dorota Tumialis: Department of Animal Environment Biology, Institute of Animal Sciences, Warsaw University of Life Sciences, Ciszewskiego 8, 02-786 Warsaw, Poland
Lidia Florczak: Department of Animal Environment Biology, Institute of Animal Sciences, Warsaw University of Life Sciences, Ciszewskiego 8, 02-786 Warsaw, Poland
Julia Dylewska: Department of Animal Environment Biology, Institute of Animal Sciences, Warsaw University of Life Sciences, Ciszewskiego 8, 02-786 Warsaw, Poland
Magdalena Jakubowska: Department of Monitoring and Signalling of Agrophages, Institute of Plant Protection—National Research Institute, Władysława Wegorka 20, 60-318 Poznań, Poland
Jolanta Kowalska: Department of Organic Agriculture and Environmental Protection, Institute of Plant Protection—National Research Institute, Władysława Węgorka 20, 60-318 Poznań, Poland
Anna Mazurkiewicz: Department of Animal Environment Biology, Institute of Animal Sciences, Warsaw University of Life Sciences, Ciszewskiego 8, 02-786 Warsaw, Poland

Agriculture, 2025, vol. 15, issue 19, 1-10

Abstract: The two-spotted spider mite ( Tetranychus urticae Koch) (Acari: Tetranychidae) is one of the most widespread and destructive phytophagous mite species, occurring across all climatic zones worldwide. Currently, the control of spider mites in crop protection relies primarily on chemical acaricides. However, the selection of resistant populations to their active ingredients is reducing their efficacy. The aim of the present study was to assess the susceptibility of T. urticae to a native isolate of entomopathogenic nematodes, Steinernema feltiae Filipjev ZWO21, under laboratory conditions. The experiment was conducted using Petri dishes, each containing 22–28 adult T. urticae. Infective juveniles (IJs) of the nematodes were then applied at a dose of 8000 IJs per dish (±300 IJs per mite). Petri dishes with mites treated with nematodes were placed in a Sanyo incubation chamber at 25 °C and 60% relative humidity. After three days, dead mites were collected from the Petri dishes and dissected, and mortality was subsequently determined. The present study confirmed that the S. feltiae ZWO21 isolate exhibited considerable potential for the biological control of T. urticae , causing 37.5–83.3% (mean 57.0%) mortality in this pest species. Although this result indicates a moderate efficacy when nematodes are applied alone, it also underscores the relevance of further research into their integration with other control strategies, including acaricides, within integrated pest management (IPM) programmes.

Keywords: Steinernema feltiae; two-spotted spider mite; mortality rate; biocontrol (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q1 Q10 Q11 Q12 Q13 Q14 Q15 Q16 Q17 Q18 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0472/15/19/2096/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0472/15/19/2096/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jagris:v:15:y:2025:i:19:p:2096-:d:1767277

Access Statistics for this article

Agriculture is currently edited by Ms. Leda Xuan

More articles in Agriculture from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().