Interaction Between Metarhizium anisopliae (Met.) and the Insecticides Used for Controlling House Fly (Diptera: Muscidae) in Poultry Farm of Malaysia

The potential of integrating the mycoinsecticide, Metarhizium anisopliae (Met.), into house fly control programs is tremendous. However, the interaction between the fungus and insecticide, when applied at poultry farms, remains poorly understood. This study investigated the interaction between M. anisopliae and two selected insecticides, cyromazine and ChCy (a mixture of chlorpyrifos and cypemethrin), with three objectives: to assess the compatibility of M. anisopliae and the insecticides by measuring fungal vegetative growth and conidia production in the presence of insecticides; to evaluate the effect of M. anisopliae on these insecticides by analyzing insecticidal residue using ultra performance liquid chromatography; and to study the synergistic effects of M. anisopliae and the insecticides by applying sublethal concentrations of insecticides with M. anisopliae to house fly larvae. Metarhizium anisopliae was more tolerant to ChCy than to cyromazine, as M. anisopliae showed significantly more growth when grown with this insecticide. The M. anisopliae + ChCy combination resulted in significantly less chlorpyrifos residues compared to the ChCy plate, and 62-72% house fly larva mortality occurred when M. anisopliae and sublethal concentrations of ChCy were combined, implicating synergistic effects of the fungus with low concentrations of ChCy. Integrating M. anisopliae with compatible chemical at right concentration is crucial for poultry farm house fly control programs.