The natural enemies of the fall armyworm Spodoptera frugiperda and their application in biological control programs
Author of the article:TANG Pu WANG Zhi-Zhi WU Qiong LIU Yin-Quan SHI Min HUANG Jian-Hua CHEN Xue-Xin**
Author's Workplace：Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Biology of Crop Pathogens and Insects, Ministry of Agriculture Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology of Crop Pathogens and Insects, State Key Laboratory of Rice Biology, and Institute of Insect Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
Key Words： fall armyworm; Spodoptera frugiperda; invasive insect; migratory insect; biological control; biocontrol; biological control agents; entomophagous insect; parasitoid; predator; entomopathogen; virus; fungus; bacterium; nematode; cereal crop; mass-rearing; inundative release; ecological regulation
Abstract： The fall armyworm, Spodoptera frugiperda (Smith) (FAW), is an insect pest that feeds on more than 80 crop species with the adult moth able to move over 100 km per night. FAW was first detected in Yunnan, southwest part of China in early 2019, and rapidly spread to 18 provinces within China by May this year, which seriously threatens the food and income security of millions of farmers. The development of emergency prevention and control technology at present and sustainable management technology in the near future are extremely urgent. Based on the studies of the pest’s biology in the Americas and the experiences of management for this pest in Africa, we summary the knowledge about the species of the natural enemies (biological control agents), including entomophagous insects (parasitoids and predators) and entomopathogens (viruses, bacteria, fungi and nematodes), the biology and characters of the main group of natural enemies, the mass rearing of entomophagous insects, the small-scale production of entomopathogens, and the biological control for fall armyworm management. We also discuss the prospects for using natural enemies against fall armyworm in China.