Arthropod diversity and corn stem borer Ostrinia furnacalis Guenee population in corn endophytes

Abstract

Corn (Zea mays L.) is a strategic commodity that plays an important role in the development of agriculture and the Indonesian economy because corn has a multipurpose function that can be used for food and feed purposes. Obstacles in corn cultivation that cause low corn productivity include the attack of plant pests. The use of entomopathogenic fungi as endophytes is an alternative to chemical insecticides but can also be used to decrease the use of fertilizers. The research has been carried out at the Department of Food Crops and Horticulture Agriculture, Bontomarannu District, Gowa Regency, South Sulawesi, and the Laboratorium of Plant Pests and Diseases, Faculty of Agriculture, Hasanuddin University. Observation of larvae population of O. furnacalis was started when the plant was 35 days after planting (DAP) by observing the presence of grinding marks on the leaves and stalks of corn. The larvae found in the field are reared in the laboratory. Arthropod exploration in the field used 4 methods, namely visual observation, pitfall traps, yellow traps and using nets. The results obtained in this study were the arthropods found in the land of endophytic corn using the pitfall trap method, found as many as 48 insects. Using a net, 150 insects were found. Using the yellow trap, 243 insects were found and with visual observation found as many as 95 insects. The number of larvae of O. furnacalis infected with the fungus B. bassiana in corn female parents were 20 with an infection percentage of 83.3% and 11 male parents with an infection percentage of 91.7%.