Isolation, Molecular Identification and under Lab Evaluation of the Entomopathogenic Fungi M. anisopliae and B. bassiana against the Red Palm Weevil R. ferrugineus in Gaza Strip

Plant diseases generate challenging problems in commercial, agriculture and pose real economic threats to both conventional and organic farming systems. The red palm weevil (Rhynchophorus ferrugineus) (RPW) is one of the most destructive pests of palms in the world. Nowadays, control methods revolve around treatments based on chemicals, biotechnological systems using semi-chemicals or the development of the sterile insect technique (hardly sustainable at this time) and biological control. Biological control as the use of natural microorganisms, extracted products from microorganisms or genetically improved to resist or eliminate of pathogens. Our aim was to evaluate the entomopathogenicity of indigenous Beauveria bassiana and Metarhizium anisopliae obtained in Gaza strip against larvae and adults of R. ferrugineus in order to identify indigenous strains potentially suitable for Red Palm Weevil biological control. B. bassiana & M. anisopliae were isolated from larvae and adult dead of RPW from different position of Gaza strip. Morphological analysis of the isolated fungi and molecular identification was determined using PCR technique. Also, the efficiency of the isolated fungi were evaluated under lab conditions and optimized as a biological agent. On the anther hand, the ability of treated RPW male to infect females is examined and calculated using Abbott's formula. Our results showed that the B. bassiana and M. anisopliae exhibited a good biological control agent against larvae and adults of RPW. The pathogenicity of the two most virulent isolates and the toxicity assay on larvae showed a highest mortality percentage nearly to 100% by 6 days after spraying the larvae with 3.4 × 108 spores/ml of B. bassiana. The mortality percentage reaches to 90% after spraying the larvae with 3.6 × 108 spores/ml of M. anisopliae. The mortality for the adults treated with pesticide arrives to 50% and the control group 10% at the same time. The results revealed that the infection of the adult males by Entomopathogenic fungi (EPF) can be disseminated into the healthy population, after RPW treatment with B. bassiana and M. anisopliae. Our research concludes that B. bassiana and M. anisopliae locally isolated can be used as biological very effective.