18 Development of a Myco-insecticide for Biological Control of Locusts in Southern Africa

The LUBILOSA (Lutte Biologique contre les Locusts et les Sauteriaux) Programme has been working on the development of a myco-insecticide for the control of locusts and grasshoppers for the past 9 years. The resulting myco-insecticide product (trade name Green Muscle) is based on an oil formulation of aerial conidia of the fungal entomopathogen, Metarhizium anisopliae var. acridum. Field testing of this myco-insecticide in southern Africa has been conducted in close collaboration with the Locust and Termite Research Division of the Plant Protection Research Institute, South Africa. Trials have been conducted against Brown Locust, Locustana pardalina, in the Karoo region of South Africa and the Red Locust, Nomadacris septemfasciata, in the Buzi outbreak area of Mozambique. High (H90%) insect mortalities have been demonstrated following field applications with standard ultra low volume (ULV) spraying equipment normally used in acridid control. Moreover, extensive eco-toxicological work has shown that Green Muscle has minimal impact on other non-target species, including other insects, reptiles, birds and mammals. Accordingly, Metarhizium has been recommended by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) Pesticide Referee Group for locust control in environmentally sensitive areas. Most significantly, Green Muscle has recently undergone successful registration for locust control in South Africa. This represents a fundamental breakthrough in locust control and creates, for the first time, real opportunities to move away from the use of chemicals towards more integrated control strategies incorporating biological control techniques. This paper presents an overview of the progress of the LUBILOSA Programme and examines some of the research challenges that remain to fully implement this new technology in the future.