Predatory capacity of the mirid Macrolophus basicornis (Heteroptera: Miridae) preying on diamondback moth in arugula with or without rhizobacterium GB03

Abstract

Heteropteran predators have been highlighted over the past decades as important natural enemies of pest arthropods, which has increased interest in their biological and behavioral aspects. Some species belonging to the Miridae family have demonstrated to be effective and have the potential use as biological control agents of important agricultural pests. Macrolophus basicornis (Stal) has a short cycle and a high predation and survival rates, feeding on both eggs and larvae/nymphs of several pests, considered is a promising biological control agent. At the same time, plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (RPCPs) are naturally occurring microorganisms in the soil and can provide plant development enhancements in a variety of ways, among them assisting in indirect plant defense, by altering the volatiles profile and enhancing recruitment of natural enemies. Bacillus amyloquefaciens (strain GB03) is a naturally occurring RPCP in soil and/or may be found commercially available as a concentrated fungicide. It stands out for promoting improvements in the physiology and development of plants, as well as for the ability to compete with some pathogenic microorganisms in the soil. However, studies related to the effects of GB03 on insect behavior and development are recent, and studies on the effects of GB03 inoculation on plants and consequently the effect on behavior of natural enemies have not been reported. Thus, the objectives of the present project are: (I) to evaluate the predatory capacity of M. basicornis to the different stages of the moth, Plutella xylostella (Linnaeus, 1958); (II) to verify if B. amyloquefaciens (GB03) in association with arugula plants can modify the olfactory response of M. basicornis.