Isolation of entomopathogenic fungi in Antalya province, their morphological and their molecular identification, and testing of effectiveness of their important ones against Tetranychus urticae Koch. (Acarina: Tetranychidae) against adult and egg periods

In this study, the effectiveness of entomopathogenic fungal (EPF) species isolated from 8 different counties of Antalya province against Tetranychus urticae was investigated. For this purpose, between 2018-2019, Entomopathogenic fungi were isolated from 32 soil and 104 suspected fungal-infected arthropod taken from Aksu, Döşemealtı, Kemer, Kepez Konyaaltı, Korkuteli, Muratpaşa ve Serik districts where agricultural activities are carried out intensively in Antalya and they were identified using morphological and molecular methods. According to the results, a total of 44 fungal isolates, including 4 Aspergillus minisclerotigenes, 6 Aspergillus ochraceus, 20 Beauveria bassiana, 5 Fusarium solani, 5 Penicillium raistrickii and 4 Trichoderma sp., were obtained. The morphological and molecular identifications of six Beauveria bassiana isolates (KTG88, KPA89, K3TG9, K2TG94, STG68 and DTG54), that were found most effective in preliminary pathogenicity tests, were made. Then, the effectiness of these 6 isolates against the adult and egg stages of T. urticae were tested in Petri dishes. The study was carried out in a climate chamber with 25±1oC, 70±5% R.H. and 16:8 h (L:D) photoperiod. In the tests, all fungal isolates were used at 1x105, 1x106 and 1x107 conidia /ml spore solutions. According to the results, entomopathogenic fungi caused 25.9- 59.8% mortalities on eggs and 16- 100% mortalities on adults of T. urticae. Adults were found to be more susceptible to fungal infection than eggs. In conclusion, in this study, EPF that could potentially be used in the control of T. urticae, which is an important pest in both greenhouse and open field cultivation in Antalya province, were determined and a wide culture collection has been created. KEYWORDS: Beauveria bassiana, Entomopathogenic fungus, Microbial control, Tetranychus urticae