New Zealand Journal of Zoology abstracts

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Aspergillus flavus as a pathogen of wasps, Vespula spp., in New Zealand

T. R. GLARE

AgResearch
P.O. Box 60
Lincoln, New Zealand

R. J. HARRIS

Manaaki Whenua - Landcare Research
P.O. Box 69
Lincoln, New Zealand

B. J. DONOVAN

Donovan Scientific Insect Research
Canterbury Agriculture and Science Centre, Lincoln
Private Bag 4704
Christchurch, New Zealand

Abstract  A fungus, identified as Aspergillus flavus (Deuteromycete: Hyphomycetes), was isolated from dead, field-collected Vespula vulgaris larvae (Hymenoptera: Vespidae). After isolation and pure culturing, the fungus was inoculated onto field-collected larvae of V. germanica and V. vulgaris. Disease symptoms developed in some larvae within 24 h, and eventual emergence among treated V. germanica larvae was only 0.8% compared to 52% in the untreated controls, and 1.3% compared to 40.9% for V. vulgaris. Although the fungus demonstrates the potential of inundative pathogens as control agents of social wasps, the production of human carcinogenic aflatoxins by most A. flavus strains is expected to restrain consideration of this fungus as a biological control agent.

Keywords  Vespula spp.; wasps; entomopathogenic fungi; Aspergillus flavus; bioassay; identification

New Zealand Journal of Zoology, 1996, Vol. 23: 339-344

0301-4223/2304-0339 $2.50/0   (c) The Royal Society of New Zealand 1996

Received 18 January 1996; accepted 18 April 1996

PDF file of entire paper: medium quality (905K); (scanned from paper original: notes about this process)

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