Effect of temperature on emergence of Steinernema feltiae from infected Galleria mellonella cadavers under moist and dry conditions

The management of insect pests is mainly relied on synthetic insecticides which are inimical to humans, livestock and environment. To dispense with the pernicious consequences of chemicals, use of entomopathogenic nematodes (EPNs) is among the viable alternatives. The successful management by EPNs is dependent on their establishment in soils, infectivity, persistence and pathogenicity for longer periods. In the present study, emergence of Steinernema feltiae infective juveniles (IJs) from infected Galleria mellonella cadavers was monitored under moist and dry conditions at 5 and 10°C. Greater numbers of IJs of S. feltiae recovered from G. mellonella cadavers kept at 10°C than from those kept at 5°C. Likewise, significantly greater number of infective juveniles emerged in moist conditions as compared to dry. The relationship between both the temperatures and wet and dry conditions was highly significant (P 0.001).