Effectivity of entomopathogenic fungus strains on tomato moth Tuta absoluta   Meyrick (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae)larvae

The tomato moth, Tuta absoluta Meyrick, is a serious pest on tomatoes (Lycopersicon esculentum L.) crops in Chile. Laboratory studies were conducted to evaluate the virulence and effectiveness of the isolates Metarhizium anisopliae var. anisopliae isolate Qu-M558 and Beauveria bassiana isolate Qu-B912, on third instar of T. absoluta larvae. The first evaluation was carried out spraying directly on third instar larvae, spore suspensions (0 to 108 conidia mL-1) of each isolate through a Potter tower. Comparisons were made by calculating the area under a mortality progress curve. Differences were not observed in the areas between isolates (P = 0.384). The LC50 and LC90 for Qu-B912 were 104.4 and 107.6 conidia mL-1, and for Qu-M558 were 105.4 and 109.1 conidia mL-1, respectively. A second evaluation was carried out spraying on tomato leaves spore suspensions (0 to 108 conidia mL-1) of Qu-B912 isolate through a Potter tower. Third stage T. absoluta larvae were fed with these infected leaves. Thirteen days after inoculation doses of 108 conidias mL-1 caused 68% of larvae mortality